ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court directed on Friday Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (EPA) Director General Farzana Altaf Shah and Human Rights Cell Director General Khalid Teepu Rana to submit a report regarding the industrial units in the city in the next five days.<br /><br />A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Saqib Nisar was hearing case pertaining to environmental pollution in the federal capital.<br /><br />During the hearing, Justice Nisar inquired, if steps have been taken to curb industrial pollution.<br /><br />To this, the DG EPA said, no steps have been taken to stop industrial pollution.<br /><br />“We are not even allowed to conduct an inspection,” Shah said.<br /><br />Commenting on Shah's statement, the chief justice remarked, “Mill owners don’t know about the power of SC."<br /><br />He added that mill owners were playing with the lives of people, by the pollution caused by their mills and factories. <br /><br />"We will take Rs5 million from them as security," he remarked.<br /><br />DG EPA further said, “Mill owners have made us from watchdogs to just dogs.”<br /><br />To this, Justice Nisar said, “Those who have not submitted the security deposit, will have to pay 8 per cent markup on security, which will be put into the dam fund.”<br /><br />The court then adjourned the hearing till September 24 and directed the authorities concerned, present at the hearing, to conduct an inspection and submit a report within the next five days. <br /><br />Details have also been sought on the number of active industrial units and a count of factories and mills where measures have not yet been taken to curb pollution.<br /><br />Further, the court said, a detailed report is sought so that the situation can become clearer.<br />#SupremeCourtOfPakistan #SiddiqueJaan
