Within fifteen days of the ruling, the Tribunal ordered the FUUAST administration to deposit the fine levied in the federal government’s favour.
The Environmental Protection Tribunal (EPT) on Tuesday imposed fine Rs 1 million on the Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science, and Technology (FUUAST) for repeatedly disobeying Section 12 of the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act 1997 (PEPA 1997) during the varsity’s construction, despite repeated requests from Pak-EPA to show cause and obtain the agency’s environmental approval.
According to the decision of the Tribunal, the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) complained to the Tribunal about the University and the Capital Development, claiming that the former was the project’s proponent and the latter was in charge of developing and managing all matters in accordance with its laws and regulations in the federal capital territory.
The project proponent was obligated to take measures to develop the project in accordance with PEPA 1997 provisions as well as CDA laws, rules, and regulations, according to the complainant (Pak-EPA). However, as required by Section 12 of the PEPA of 1997 and the IEE/EIA regulations of 2000, the project proponent (FUUAST) had not received environmental approval for the aforementioned project.
The university was subjected to site inspections by the EPA team on December 16, 2020. A hearing notice was then scheduled for February 15, 2021, but neither university nor CDA representatives showed up. As a result, on March 29, 2021, the Agency served a second notice for a private hearing that would only be attended by CDA officials and not FUUAST representatives.
Additionally, on July 8, 2021, the EPA served a show-cause notice for the imposition of an administrative penalty in accordance with subsection (7) of Section 17 of PEPA 1997.
The notices were delivered after the main project was finished, according to the respondents’ testimony before the tribunal, even though it did not fall under the schedules outlined by the EPA attorney. The tribunal, however, determined that the respondent was rightfully required to abide by Section 12 of PEPA 1997.
The Pak-EPA was represented before the Tribunal by Deputy Director, Legal and Enforcement, Aamir Abbass Khan, and the decision was made by the Chairperson of the EPT, Adil Anwar, and Member (Technical), Dr. Muhammad Bashir Khan.
Within fifteen days of the ruling, the Tribunal ordered the FUUAST administration to deposit the fine levied in the federal government’s favour. The Tribunal did specify that if the Varsity did not pay the fine within the allotted time, it would be recovered as unpaid land revenue arrears.