Islamabad (Islamabad): The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday warned to shut down mineral water companies if the quality of water does not improve.
A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar and comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Faisal Arbab resumed hearing in mineral water suo motu case.
The court dismayed at the report submitted by the water commission, stating that the companies lacked qualified and trained staff for water testing while some of the bottling and beverages plants did not have relevant environmental approval.
Justice Nisar remarked that plain water was being marketed as mineral water.
The CJP noted that if the mineral water companies were taxed Re1 per litre, the compensation amount will near Rs700 billion. “We can build the dams with the money,” he observed.
CJP Nisar asked the advocate generals of all four provinces to suggest how the issue could be fixed. "This fraud with citizens should be ended [...] We will not let the citizens' water and money be wasted." he asserted.
The bench directed water companies to follow the recommendations of the judicial commission.
On November 20, the SC had directed a judicial commission to inspect companies that sell bottled water locally, and directed all such companies, including Nestle, to rectify their errors within 10 days.