اورنج لائن کیلئے کڑی شرائط

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سپریم کورٹ نے لاہور اورنج لائن ٹرین ٹریک پر کام روکنے کے لاہور ہائی کورٹ  فیصلے کو کالعدم قرار دیتے ہوئے پنجاب حکومت کو منصوبے کو جاری رکھنے کا حکم دیا ہے تاہم عدالت عظمی نے اس کیلئے 31 کڑی شرائط بھی عائد کر دی ہیں۔ پانچ رکنی بینچ میں جسٹس مقبول باقر نے اختلافی ںوٹ لکھا ہے ۔

سپریم کورٹ نے فیصلے میں لاہور اورنج لائن ٹرین پر 31 شرائط رکھی ہیں ۔ عدالت نے کہا ہے کہ پنجاب حکومت ٹریک کی تعمیر کے دوران تاریخی مقامات کو نقصان سے بچانے کیلئے تمام ضروری اقدامات کرے ۔ ماہرین پر مشمل خصوصی ٹیمیں منصوبے سے تاریخی عمارتوں کو نقصان پہنچنے کا جائزہ لیں گی ۔ تعمیراتی کام کے دوران تکنیکی ماہرین جگہ پر موجود ہوں گے ۔ سپریم کورٹ نے فیصلے میں لاہور کی تاریخی عمارتوں کی حفاظت کے لیے سالانہ دس کروڑ روپے مختص کرنے کے ساتھ ماہرین پر مشتمل کمیٹی بھی قائم کرنے کا حکم دیا ہے جس میں محکمہ آثار قدیمہ کے علاوہ متعلقہ محکموں کے حکام اور ایک ریٹائرڈ جج بھی شامل ہوں گے۔ عدالت کے فیصلے میں کمیٹی کا دورانیہ ایک سال ہے ۔

جسٹس اعجاز افضل کی سربراہی میں سپریم کورٹ کے پانچ رکنی بینچ نے لاہور ہائی کورٹ کے فیصلے کے خلاف پنجاب حکومت کی اپیلوں پر فیصلہ سترہ اپریل کو محفوظ کیا تھا۔

ORDER OF THE COURT
With majority of 4 against 1, Maqbool Baqar, J,
dissenting, we endorse and approve the NOCs/permission letters
issued by the competent authorities and the recommendations of
experts relating to execution, mitigation and remedial measures
required to be adopted by the executing agency and allow the
Project to proceed subject to the following conditions and directions:-
i) The appellant shall make all necessary arrangements to
ensure that the monuments remain stable and undamaged
in all respects during the execution of the Project as
specified in the HIA and Study of Control of Vibration,
Noise and Foundation;
ii) Vibration monitoring shall be undertaken as a part of the
monitoring plan using the crack measure devices such as
Avongard Standard Tell-Tale throughout the construction
period and for an additional period of 10 weeks from the
date of commencement of commercial operation of the
train or such further time as may be directed by the
Director General, Archaeology. In case, it is found that
vibration levels at any stage of the construction or
operation are exceeding safe limits, construction work /
operation shall immediately be discontinued and remedial
action shall be taken to ensure that such levels are brought
down to acceptable limits. Such actions may inter alia
include use of one piece of equipment at a time, during the
construction phase, adjustment of train speed, addition of
buffers and such other remedial and mitigating measures
as may be recommended by the experts;
iii) Technical experts shall be present at the sites during the
construction phase in the vicinity of the antiquities and
special premises with all necessary equipment for
monitoring vibration levels. In case, vibration levels exceed
the acceptable limits, work shall immediately be stopped,
remedial measures taken to the satisfaction of experts and
further work shall not commence unless written clearance
for resumption of work is given by the experts;
iv) An independent and experienced Conservation Engineer
shall be appointed to monitor the Project, both during the
construction and operation phases. He shall submit
monthly reports to the Advisory Committee which shall
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make such further recommendations to the Director
General, Archaeology as may be required to ensure that
the Project as a whole is meeting all technical
requirements meant to preserve, protect and conserve the
antiquities or protected premises;
v) On completion of the project, the train shall be operated on
experimental basis for at least 2 weeks on the entire length
of the route and the vibration levels shall be monitored to
ensure that the same are within the acceptable limits.
Commercial operation shall not commence unless written
clearance is given by the experts confirming that vibration
levels have consistently been found to be within
acceptable limits;
vi) The speed of the Train shall be reduced while passing
near the monuments as recommended by the Directorate
General of Archaeology from time to time on the basis of
data made available to it;
vii) State of the art vibration measuring equipments shall
permanently be installed at suitable places in and around
the antiquities and special premises to monitor levels of
vibration created by operation of the train. Records of the
same shall be maintained and regularly checked by a
responsible officer deputed to do so;
viii) Special teams consisting of qualified experts will be set up
which will periodically inspect all antiquities and special
premises to detect any damage or deterioration at the
sites. Proper records and logbooks shall be maintained for
this purpose;
ix) Any damage or deterioration shall be reported to the
Director General, Archaeology in writing who shall take
remedial steps necessary to ensure safety of the buildings
and structures;
x) Recommendations of the Advisory Committee (already set
up) shall be placed before the Directorate General of
Archaeology, who shall take necessary steps to ensure
that the same are complied with in letter and spirit by all
concerned agencies, contractors, sub-contractors and
operators;
xi) Where excavation is necessary it shall be carried out in a
way that it would not affect any structure or foundation of
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the antiquities or special premises. Where necessary
special arrangements shall be made to stabilize and
strengthen the structure of the antiquities and special
premises. All necessary safety arrangements shall be
made in accordance with the best engineering expertise
during excavation, construction and execution phases of
the Project;
xii) The executing agency shall install accelerometers, velocity
transducers, noise detectors and vibration measuring
equipment near the antiquities and special premises. The
appellant shall ensure implementation of additional
mitigation and remedial measures as mentioned in
vibration analysis report by NESPAK, Heritage Impact
Assessment (HIA) as well as in the reports submitted by
Dr. Uppal and Dr. Rogers;
xiii) Excavation would be carried out in a way that would not
affect any of the exposed or buried structure of the Special
Premises;
xiv) In case of any adverse impact to the antiquities or special
premises during excavation, construction or execution, the
appellant and all other related agencies shall immediately
and forthwith stop and discontinue further work, take all
possible actions to protect and conserve the antiquities
and special premises and in this regard, involve such
experts and consultants as may be necessary to ensure
that the causes and effects of the adverse impact are
effectively removed;
xv) A dedicated hotline shall be set up, telephone numbers
whereof shall be prominently displayed in public areas
around all antiquities and special premises for reporting
damage or deterioration observed by members of the
public or tourists;
xvi) In case, any information/report is received by the Director
General, Archaeology the same shall be investigated
within 7 days and after receiving recommendations (if any)
from experts repair/ renovation work shall be commenced
within 30 days;
xvii) No building material or equipment shall be
stored/stockpiled within protected area of the monuments;
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xviii) No change shall be made in the alignment of the track
which brings any part of it nearer to the monuments than
the distances set out hereinabove;
xix) Dust pollution during construction shall be controlled
through extensive sprinkling of water on regular basis and
taking such other steps including but not limited to covering
the monuments with protective sheets in order to avoid any
damage from dust;
xx) The design of the viaduct and nearby stations in terms of
colour and designing shall be in harmony with the setting
and appearance of the monuments;
xxi) The Hydraulic Tank of Shalamar Garden shall be restored,
as far as possible, to its original position and the
surrounding area will be converted into a green area;
xxii) Structures on the southern side of the Shalamar Garden
shall be camouflaged through construction of a wall in
consultation with the Directorate General of Archaeology.
All practicable efforts shall be made to create a buffer Zone
around Shalamar Garden as per proposal already pending
in the Directorate General of Archaeology and other
competent forums;
xxiii) The decorative motifs of Shalamar Garden would be
replicated on the train station near the Shalamar Garden to
create harmony with the Garden;
xxiv) The tile mosaic motifs of the Gulabi Bagh Gateway would
be replicated on the nearby station of the Gateway to
create harmony with the historic Gateway;
xxv) The area around the Chauburji Gateway would be properly
attended and developed into a greenbelt;
xxvi) The decorative motifs of the Chauburji Gateway would be
replicated on the nearby station of the Chauburji Gateway
to create a harmony with the historic Gateway;
xxvii) The area around the Zaib-un-Nisa’s Tomb would be
properly attended and developed;
xxviii) The decorative motifs of the Zaib-un-Nisa’s Tomb would be
replicated on the nearby station of the Zaib-un-Nisa’s
Tomb to create harmony with the historic;
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xxix) The Respondents shall in consultation with UNESCO and
other international agencies prepare phase-wise plan to
control and monitor urban encroachments and the process
of creating buffer zone around the Shalamar garden;
xxx) All future projects which directly, indirectly and incidentally
involve antiquities or heritage sites shall in the first
instance be widely publicized through print and electronic
media at least 6 months prior to proposed date of
commencement of the project and public hearings shall be
conducted to hear objections, if any against such project;
and
xxxi) For all future projects, NOCs, licences, approvals and
permissions as required by law shall be obtained before
work on the project site is commenced.
2. In addition to the above, we direct the Government of
Punjab within a period of 30 days from the date of this judgment to
take the following steps:-
e) Set up an Antiquity and Special Premises Fund with the sum
of Rupees One Hundred Million which shall be dedicated to
monitoring, renovation and reconstruction work of 11 protected
and special premises mentioned hereinabove. It shall be a
revolving fund and shall be replenished on yearly basis. It shall
be utilized firstly for the maintenance, preservation, restoration
and renovation work of the protected and Special Premises,
subject matter of this lis and thereafter on other Antiquities and
Special Premises situated in Lahore as may be recommended
by the special Committee of Experts constituted under this
Judgment;
f) A broad based Special Committee of Experts consisting of
Director General, Archeology Department; a Professor of the
Department of Archeology, University of the Punjab; Head of
Department of Structural Engineering, University of
Engineering and Technology, Lahore; a Senior Professor
nominated by the Chairman of Board of Directors of National
College of Arts; chaired by a retired Judge of this Court
nominated by the Chief Justice of Pakistan shall be notified
which shall oversee implementation of the judgment of this
Court and the directions issued herein. This Committee shall
also make such further recommendations to the Chief Minister
Punjab to undertake such measures as may be necessary to
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implement and enforce the directions and recommendations
made in this judgment. The tenure of the Committee shall be
one year from the date of its notification;
g) The Government of Punjab shall retain the services of at least
three Experts having expertise in the field of archeology and
renovation, preservation and maintenance of antiquities and
special premises. One of the experts shall be a person having
expertise in structural engineering. All three experts will work
as a Technical Committee with tenure of one year. The
Technical Committee shall report to advise and assist the
aforesaid Special Committee of Experts. The Committee shall,
if required and with the approval of Director General,
Archeology retain services of such other experts as it may
consider necessary to undertake its work more effectively
regarding the steps required to be taken to monitor the
protected and Special Premises all over Lahore and suggest
remedial measures that may be necessary to ensure the
safety of all protected and special premises in Lahore; and
h) We also emphasize the fact that the present condition of the
protected and special premises calls for major preservation,
renovation, reconstruction and repair work. The Government
of Punjab shall take immediate steps and we have been
assured by learned Advocate General, Punjab that such steps
shall immediately be taken to start repair and renovation work
for which the requisite funds will be made available within thirty
days from the date of this judgment.
3. In view of the foregoing discussion, the Impugned
Judgment of the Lahore High Court is set aside and the instant
appeals are allowed in terms noted above. Civil Petition No.3101-L
of 2016 is unanimously dismissed and Leave to Appeal is refused.