PHC orders provision of clean drinking water

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Friday directed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to provide clean drinking water to the citizens by installing filtration plants and stopping the sale of substandard mineral water in the provincial capital and other parts of the province.
A two-member bench allowed the writ petition filed by senior lawyer Muhammad Khurshid Khan, seeking action against the sale of unsafe bottled water and provision of clean drinking water to the people in the province.
The bench directed the provincial government to install water filtration plants at hotels, restaurants, hospitals, educational institutions, courts, bus stands and other public places.
The court directed the authorities concerned to repair the existing filtration plants in the city and other parts of the province. The court also asked the government to take action against those throwing garbage in the canals. The bench allowed the writ petition after the provincial government and other respondent departments failed to submit proper reply in the writ petition. The court observed that providing clean drinking water to the people was the responsibility of the state.