FPSC Assistant Director (Legal / Enforcement) (BS-17) - Pak-EPA
The Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Climate Change & Environmental Coordination, enforces federal environmental standards, regulates pollution controls, monitors industrial effluent, and prosecutes violators before Environmental Tribunals and appellate courts.
The post of Assistant Director (Legal / Enforcement) (BS-17) (Case No. 121/2026) represents an executive legal and enforcement appointment requiring an LLB degree and 2 years of proven litigation or prosecution experience.
Test Scheme & Marks Distribution
The screening examination totals 100 marks:
Part-I: English (20 Marks)
- Grammar Usage & Sentence Structuring: Correct syntax, sentence logic, prepositions, idiomatic expressions, and legal English composition.
Part-II: Professional Legal Test (80 Marks)
The professional syllabus focuses heavily on environmental jurisprudence and federal procedural law:
- Pakistan Environmental Protection Act (PEPA), 1997:
- Powers and functions of the Federal Agency (Pak-EPA).
- Prohibition of certain discharges or emissions (Section 11).
- Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) mandates (Section 12).
- Environmental Protection Orders (EPO) (Section 16).
- Penalties and offenses by corporate bodies (Sections 17-19).
- Environmental Tribunals & Magistrates:
- Establishment, jurisdiction, and procedures of Environmental Tribunals (Section 20-22).
- Appeals to High Court (Section 23).
- Powers of Environmental Magistrates to take cognizance and issue summary trials.
- National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS):
- Permissible emission levels for ambient air, municipal/industrial effluent, motor vehicle exhausts, and noise levels.
- Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1898:
- Cognizable vs non-cognizable offenses, powers of arrest, search warrants, seizure memos, preparation of charge sheets/complaints, and recording confessions.
- Code of Civil Procedure (CPC), 1908:
- Territorial and pecuniary jurisdiction, temporary injunctions (Order 39), suits against the Government, and execution of decrees.
- Qanun-e-Shahadat Order (QSO), 1984:
- Evidentiary value of chemical lab reports, chain of custody of collected industrial samples, primary vs secondary evidence, burden of proof, and expert opinions (Article 59).
- Constitution of Pakistan, 1973:
- Article 9 (Right to Life incorporating Right to Clean Environment â Shehla Zia case doctrine).
- Article 199 (Writ Jurisdiction of High Courts in environmental public interest litigation).
Crucial Case Laws and Judicial Precedents
To distinguish yourself in both the screening test and the subsequent interview:
- Shehla Zia v. WAPDA (PLD 1994 SC 693): Landmark verdict establishing that the Right to Life under Article 9 includes the right to a healthy, clean, and unpolluted environment.
- Asghar Leghari v. Federation of Pakistan (2015): Groundbreaking climate change justice judgment establishing the Climate Change Commission.