HYDERABAD: Additi­onal Advocate General (AAG) Allah Bachayo Soomro appearing in the Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit, on Monday filed the provincial government’s comment on a petition challenging the construction of a subsoil water reservoir in Islamkot for the Thar Coal project. Strongly opposing the petition, the AAG termed it a politically motivated plea.

Petitioners Mr Lakho and 10 other residents of Mithi, have moved the court citing the Coal Energy Board, Thar Coal Authority and Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company as respondents stating that they were building a dam on their [petitioners’] lands near Gorano and other villages in Islamkot taluka. The covered area of the dam was 2,700 acres and it was supposed to store hazardous water to be extracted from coal mines. The petitioners said that the dam would destroy their own lands as well as those of other people living in 15 other villages. They informed the court that the vulnerable villages had a population of 15,000 whose livelihood, farming and livestock, would be affected.

According to the petitioners, who were represented by Advocate Ayatullah Khowaja, the Thar desert faces a water scarcity where 200,000 trees, 100 per cent cultivable land, 20,000 sweet water wells and 10 natural ponds are considered precious. About 50 per cent of the land is categorised as Qabuli owned by people and there are temples and five old graveyards.

Filing the provincial government’s comments on the peition, AAG Soomro contended that an annexure [newspaper clipping] of the petition, concerning a visit by former chief minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim, indicated that it was a politically motivated petition. He submitted in court that it was a development project of the provincial government which the petitioners wanted to sabotage.

Advocate Umer Memon, who held brief on behalf of Engro’s counsel Advocate Umer Soomro, before the SHC bench, comprising Justice Zafar Ahmed Rajput and Justice Mohammad Saleem Jeesar.

Advocate Memon said that the environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the project had been done and the petitioners had not raised any objection there. He said that it was not a dam but a reservoir for storing subsoil water.

He said that the petition raised an environmental issue for which the project stood clear under the EIA.

An Engro representative informed the bench that the subsoil water to be extracted during coal mining would be pumped out and stored in a natural depression within the area.

Advocate Khowaja argued that his clients did not oppose establishment of the reservoir but wanted it to be built away from their lands as alternative sites were available. He said the hazardous water reservoir would affect the lands, sweet water wells, 200,000 trees and as many animals within the surrounding areas.

Justice Rajput observed that nothing was more important than national project, and told Mr Khowaja: “Let Sindh progress”. Advocated Khowaja insisted that any of the seven available alternative sites could be chosen for the reservoir.

The court adjourned the matter till July 13.During the hearing of the petition, the Tharparkar deputy commissioner and Islamkot assistant commissioner also filed their comments terming certain points mentioned in the petition false/incorrect. They said that affected people could be compensated accordingly as per the relevant law.

Published in Dawn, July 5th, 2016