Residents press for action over pollution in Hattar industrial area

HARIPUR: Residents and activists in Hattar have renewed calls for action over industrial pollution, saying emissions and contaminated water from factories in the area have become a major threat to public health and local livelihoods.

Hattar Industrial Estate in Haripur district is described as one of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s top revenue-generating industrial zones, but locals say its environmental impact has become a serious concern. Social activist Malik Ziafat Zaman said the estate was established on fertile agricultural land and had become a persistent danger for people living nearby. He said families across the area were living under severe strain and that deaths had affected almost every household.

Zaman held the Environmental Protection Agency responsible for failing to protect the environment, wildlife and public health despite its mandate. He said pollution linked to cement plants, lead-smelting units and the poultry sector had badly affected residents, while no effective system of accountability had been enforced.

Referring to testing conducted among children in the area, Zaman said UNICEF had identified the seriousness of the issue and found that more than 88 per cent of local children had dangerous levels of lead in their blood. He said the findings should have prompted the declaration of a health emergency in Hattar, but alleged that neither the health department nor public health authorities took meaningful steps in response. He added that residents had been enduring the situation for months while state institutions were largely missing from the ground.

Zaman also acknowledged the support of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Education Minister Arshad Ayub Khan, Yousuf Ayub Khan and the assistant commissioner of Khanpur for responding to public concerns. He called on the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the director general of the Environmental Protection Agency to visit Hattar themselves, review conditions and take measures to deliver relief to affected residents and protect future generations.

Inspection seen as step toward accountability

Separately, Farrukh Shahzad said a recent inspection of Hattar Industrial Estate by Deputy Director of Environment Muhammad Shahbaz Khan marked an important step in addressing environmental complaints in the area. He said the visit went beyond a routine official exercise and reflected growing official attention to issues repeatedly raised by the Environmental Protection Forum through advocacy and public outreach.

According to Shahzad, the forum helped bring the matter before authorities by collecting evidence, representing affected communities and drawing attention to conditions in the area. He said the inspection led to demands for accountability from industrial units, directions to comply with environmental rules, requirements to submit relevant records and a one-week deadline for corrective action.

Shahzad said the department’s attention to coal use, toxic emissions, dust and polluted water showed that public awareness efforts and community mobilisation by the forum had begun to produce a response from authorities.