Stop destroying the environment of Peshawar

A Public Service Litigation

For Suo moto action by the:

1. Supreme Courtof Pakistan
2. Peshawar High Court

ACTION REQUIRED:

1. Restrain from further destroying the environment of Peshawar by not cutting down the green hedge on the median of the University road and replacing it with un-suitable species like grass etc;

2. Restrain from desecration of the holy book by inscribing the word IQRA on the proposed Iqra chowk of the U/Town chowk.

3. Compensate for the damage already caused to and inflicted on the environment;

4. Restore and rehabilitate the destroyed evergreen live hedge along the median of the University road;

5. Redesign the demolished structures at the turnabouts (chowks) in consultation with the qualified Traffic Engineers and Environmentalists and notified to the general public before reconstruction.

Respectfully sheweth,

Following is submitted for sympathetic consideration of this honorable court:

1. That a huge amount of taxpayers’ money was invested on the raising, nursing, nurturing and maintenance of the green hedge on the median of the University road.

2. That not only money but also TIME was invested on the development of this hedge, which runs into about one and a half and/or two decades.

3. That the respondents dismantled the four turnabouts in the vicinity of Town chowk, comprising of beautiful fountains of different designs recently built at the cost of the squeezed national kitty.

4. That they then cut down all the beautiful hedges comprising of the evergreen species from Hayatabad chowk to Gora Qabristan over the dual carriageway, Peshawar’s most busy highway both during day and the whole night.

5. That they dug out the debris, roots and remnants of the erstwhile beautiful evergreen hedge, thus causing inconvenience to the neighboring population, commuters and pedestrians.

6. That they dumped clay in the highway median cleared of the hedge and the operation continued for months causing inconvenience for the neighboring population, pedestrians and commuters comprising of students, teachers, patients of several biggest hospitals of the province, international traffic via Afghanistan etc.

7. That they heaped up the soil above the metalled berms of the median of the highway in a convex configuration throughout and heaps at some places, thereby letting the soil to drop down on the road under the gravity, especially when the plants bed is irrigated regularly by an army of malis through plastic pipes and sometimes through the flood irrigation from the hoses of the steel pipes installed there.

8. That the situation worsens during rains when all the soil moistens and flows with the rainwater on the road causing splashing of the mud on the moving vehicles and the pedestrians.

9. That thus there is a persistent overflow of the irrigation water on the road, which not only pollutes the road but also reducing its life.

10. That they replaced the beautiful compact evergreen hedge of an average size of about one and a half meter high, 4 meters wide and about 7 KMs long from Hayatabad Main Chowk upto Gora Qabristan, thus a live hedge biomass volume of about 40000 cubic meters was destroyed.

11. That the respondents cut down it all of a sudden without prior notice to or for the knowledge or suggestions of the general public who are the stakeholders in the public property and environment.

12. That the respondents started this operation during April/May this year, which is not the proper season for planting.

13. That they prolonged the operation un-necessarily causing inconvenience to the neighboring population, commuters, pedestrians and general public.

14. That they replaced the hedge with kabal (Cynodon dactylon), a seasonal and deciduous grass, which will thus give a deserted look in autumn and winter when it will dry off.

15. That they put stones at places, especially near the University area, which can serve as favorite fuel material for blocking the road during riots and strikes as the area is highly prone due to the neighborhood of the students, doctors, paramedics, nurses and the villagers who have been a source of making law and order situation in the past and are still a potential source.

16. That the roundabouts at the University Town chowk are being used for the advertisements of the AMI as is evident from the writings on the cloth covering these chowks and several boards along the road.

17. That they have planned to rename the University Town Chowk as “IQRA chowk” for the cheap popularity to work as an advertisement of respondents # 2 and 3, thus causing desecration of the holy Ayat by exposing it to dust, dirt, smoke and other vagaries of weather and even to the stray dogs etc.

18. That they have planted environmentally un-suitable plants along the median and that too, at long distances from each other.