September 15, 2018
On Saturday, Pakistan Supreme Court ordered the Chief Executive Officers of major mineral water companies to appear before it on Sunday in a case regarding the alleged exploitation of water resources in the country.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, who was heading the 2-judge bench, had taken suo motu notice of the issue on Friday & sought data regarding water usage by the companies from departments concerned, the Dawn reported.
While hearing the case at the Supreme Court's Lahore Registry on Saturday, CJP Nisar said the court will see "whether the mineral water (provided by the companies) even has minerals in it or not".
Justice Nisar said that companies selling water should sit with the govt & decide a rate for extracting water. A lawyer for the federal govt informed the Supreme Court that the mineral water companies pay the government 25 paise per litre of water, while selling it for ₹50 per litre, the daily said.
At this, the CJP remarked that he himself boiled & drank tap water at home because "that is what (the people of) my nation are drinking". He observed that a poor person was compelled to drink pond water even today. Justice Nisar emphasized the value of water by saying that it was now even more expensive than gold.
He said people have gotten into the habit of drinking mineral water & money was being made off of a natural resource. "We will not allow the theft of water under any condition," the Chief Justice warned.
The CJP observed that the companies making money from water get ahead while common people get left behind, adding that steps need to be taken to improve the lives of the common man.
The Court subsequently ordered the CEOs of all major companies selling mineral water — including Nestle, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Gourmet — to appear before the bench on Sunday.
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