Islamabad, Oct. 11: Pakistan had been advised in 1961 to move out the entire population from the area where the earthquake originated on Saturday. Instead, a hill resort is being planned there.

A foreign geological survey firm, Hunting Technical Services Limited, had advised the Pakistani government in 1961 to evacuate the area, including the Murree hills, Hazara and Kashmir in the Himalayan region, because of its fragile geology.

The firm had been tasked to study watershed characteristics, including geology of the proposed Mangla Dam, encompassing the area.

The proposed New Murree project, for which the New Murree Development Authority (NMDA) has earmarked 4,111 acres of thick conifer forest, is being undertaken in total disregard to environmental hazards the scheme would entail and the area falling in a quake-prone zone.

The project has triggered a wave of speculative purchase of land to the right of the Islamabad-Murree expressway. The mad rush is premised on good prospects for such a project, which the provincial government is desirous to develop as an alternative to the Old Murree, Patriata and Bhurban resorts.

Headed by Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, who belongs to the influential Chaudhry family of Gujarat, the Punjab provincial government had in January last year announced plans for the development of a new township at Patriata, signalling the demise of a substantial part of thick forest.

“Little consideration seems to have gone into the environmental aspects ? the consequences of such projects, the environmental hazards accruing from removal of forest and construction of buildings and, above all, the area being located in a highly quake-prone zone,” Arshad H. Abassi, a consultant with the Pakistan Meteorological Department said.

Abassi said the entire area of (Pakistan) Kashmir and adjoining hilly regions consist of relatively soft rocks ? mostly sandstone, mudstone (shale) and siltstone ? making it even more vulnerable to earthquakes.

The new city, which is five times bigger than Murree city, will cause permanent loss to quality and quantity of water for the region including Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

NMDA officials say forest land will be leased out to private landowners by fragmenting extensive landscapes into smaller, disconnected residential and commercial plots.

“We are most probably paying the price for disregarding the natural balance and shelving warnings by experts,” Abassi said of the earthquake, which also affected the Murree hills.

The earthquake wiped out dozens of villages and hill towns, mostly because of massive earth movements, landslides and poor building structure, including that of schools and hospitals.

Abassi believes that the New Murree project in the quake-prone area will not only cause environmental degradation but will also endanger the lives of thousands.

“Much of the destruction could also have been avoided had the authorities been more strict on adherence to construction controls,” said Suhail Shabir, an architect associated with the Capital Development Authority as engineer.

Environment activists have been urging the government to be strict with new construction and ensure that the bylaws are adhered to but nepotism, corruption and violation of regulations by politically influential people have combined to produce a ticking bomb ? the city of New Murree ? that could explode if another calamity of this magnitude hits the area.