LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday directed the deputy commissioners (DCs) to lodge cases and impose a fine of Rs200,000 on the farmers found involved in stubble burning in their respective jurisdictions.

Hearing petitions relating to smog and other environmental issues, Justice Shahid Karim expressed his displeasure over the DCs for their failure to check stubble burning in Punjab.

The deputy commissioners of Gujranwala, Okara, Kasur and Hafizabad also appeared before the court in compliance with a direction issued on the last hearing following incidents of stubble burning in these districts.

The judge admonished the officers for their failure to control stubble burning and directed a law officer to inform the Punjab chief secretary about the performance of his deputy commissioners.

The judge also directed the law officer to place a Google report before the chief secretary which showed at least 153 incidents of stubble burning in Okara district alone.

Justice Karim asked the DCs who was responsible for the incidents of stubble burning despite a clear direction issued by the court to check such practices. “Tell me if you are unable to implement the court’s orders,” the judge asked the DCs.

The judge observed that the clean environment was not an issue of the posterity, but it was a matter of survival of the existing generation.

The Okara’s DC stated that as many as 151 cases had been registered against the farmers during the last two weeks for violating the ban. He said the whole machinery of the district was working to implement the court’s directions.

The judge said the purpose of summoning the DCs was to sensitise them on the importance of the issue.

“Go back to your districts and start taking strict action against the farmers involved in stubble burning,” the judge told the DCs and ordered them to also impose a fine of Rs200,000 on the people found involved in the practice, in addition to register cases against them.

The judge will resume the hearing next week.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2022