RAWALPINDI, Sept 19: Punjab Environmental Tribunal on Wednesday issued 10 arrest warrants of stone crushing machine owners at Taxila, poultry farms, medical centre, pharmaceutical and a restaurant at Murree for polluting the environment.

The tribunal took up to 44 cases on Wednesday. It issued arrest warrants in 10 cases, issued notices to five and adjourned the proceedings of remaining cases till the next hearing in November 6.

The arrest warrants were issued for owners of stone crushing machines, Mohammad Najam, Malik Brothers, Mohammad Farooq, Aurangzeb Poultry Farm, Raja Attique Poultry Farm, Marhaba Sweets Murree, Al-Madina Medical Centre Murree, a restaurant owner, Shaigon Pharmaceutical company Rawat and others.

The EPA alleged that the factories’ owners in and around the district failed to adopt pollution control measures within their premises and creating environment pollution in the area.

“The notices issued to the owners of the factories for not installing waste treatment plants in their premises.

If the representatives of the factory owners did not appear before the environmental tribunal, then the tribunal would issue arrest warrants in the next hearing,” said District Officer Shaukat Hayat, while talking to Dawn.

He said that notices served to the industrial units under section 11 and 12 of the Punjab Environment Protection Act 1997 (amended 2012).

He said that the Punjab-EPA would inspect waste treatment plants in all the industrial units, if they submitted compliance report to the tribunal.