LAHORE: The Parks and Horticulture Authority`s plan of raising the ground level of major greenbelts in the city may not only affect the sewerage but also cause accumulation of rainwater on roads.

Since the plan, being executed by the PHA these days, may also affect the government`s efforts of raising the depleting underground water table, the dumping of huge quantity of soil on roads, including the Shah Alam Road (Mirdad Chowk to Ayub Chowk) in Johar Town, to raise the level of a 20-foot wide median greenbelt is also causing environmental and healthissuesin the area.

`Twenty days back, the PHA workers had dumped soil heaps on both sides of the median greenbelt of the Shah Alam Road. After dumping, they didn`t return to use it, thus creating a headache for us,` deplores Ashraf, a local resident, while talking to Dawn on Tuesday.

`These soil heaps are creating dust pollution and causing health hazards inthe area. But no-one came here to resolve this issue,` he complained.

Talking to Dawn, an official source said a senior official of the Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) also raised objections to the PHA`s greenbelt raising project.

According to him, the project is harmful to various activities related to diversion of rainwater from roads to green-belts for raising water table and smooth flow of sewage in the pipes laid underground.

`The officer, in an official mobile (WhatsApp group) commented on some pictures of the Shah Alam Road having a number of soil heaps dumped to raise the central greenbelt level. He said such activities may cause flooding on roads in monsoon as well as choke the manholesand underground sewage pipes.

Moreover, it will also damage various activities to raise the underground water table,` the official quoted the Wasa officer as having said.

PHA Director Misbah Dar dispelled the impression, stating that the project was aimed at raising only such greenbelts as were deep.

According to him, the heaps of soil on the Shah Alam Road would soon be thrown into the greenbelt.

`In fact, while developing a Miyawaki forest at the central mega roundabout at the Finance and Trade Centre (near Expo Centre), we found a huge quantity of soil. We decided to use it in the greenbelt of Shah Alam Road in a bid to raise its ground level. I don`t think it will cause issues,` he claimed.

However, Mr Dar admitted that the soil heaps were causing environmental issues in the area.

`I hope we will have an excavator soon to put the soil into the greenbelt,` he added.

The Wasa managing director was not available for comments.