Municipal institutions violating solid waste rules in J&K
At a time when Novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been declared as Pandemic, this article on the protection of water bodies looks bit insignificant. The idea of writing this piece is basically to shake the conscience of authorities at the helm on the eve of World Environment Day as they have taken issues like water, waste management and sanitation for granted.
The idea of commemorating the world water day on June 5th every year is to focus attention of people living across the globe on the importance of the environment. World Environment Day has become a global platform for public outreach, with more than 143 countries participating annually. First organized in 1974, it has been a major campaign for environmental issues ranging from marine pollution, human overgrowth, and raising awareness about global warming, sustainable consumption, and wildlife crime.
By the grace of Almighty, Jammu & Kashmir has been gifted by enormous water bodies. We have mighty glaciers, lakes, rivers , streams, nallahs and canals but as for as their management is concerned the same is pitiful and pathetic. Most of our water bodies and even drinking water sources are being used as garbage dump sites and the irony is that Municipal Institutions who are supposed to enforce the laws governing municipal solid waste management are themselves the perpetrators of crime.
Unscientific Waste Management
Addressing unscientific disposal of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is a challenging task for civic authorities across the world. Due to harsh climatic conditions and scarcity of land to create new scientific landfill sites, waste management in Jammu & Kashmir is more onerous and arduous task. The focus of authorities in J&K should have been setting up scientific waste management facilities, but their priorities are quite different. Government is more focused on infrastructure development like construction of new highways, dams and flyovers plus laying of power transmission lines and railways. During 2019-20 annual budget mere Rs 4 crores was allocated by Government for Rural Waste Management in J&K and only Rs 464 crores was allocated to 91 Urban Local Bodies (municipal committees and councils). Even the money available under Swachh Bharat Mission Gramin is unutilized as not even 1 % of the DPRs have been prepared on Rural Waste Management by respective Districts. Out of 4130 Panchayat Halqas in Jammu & Kashmir not more than 5 or 6 village Panchayats undertake waste management work under SBM Gramin. Due to the flawed Government policies municipal solid waste management in an ecologically fragile place like Kashmir has become a great casualty. Most of the cities and towns including populated villages have turned into garbage dump sites and unfortunate part of it is that Municipal authorities have themselves become the rule breakers and perpetrators of crime as garbage dump sites have been created around water-bodies like lakes, canals, rivers or streams.
Doodh Ganga
Doodh Ganga is a small river that originates from Pir Panjal glaciers in South West of Kashmir. Around half a million population in Srinagar city is supplied drinking water from Doodh Ganga water filtration plant located in city outskirts at Kralpora. The water supplied is completely unhygienic as huge amount of solid and liquid waste enters into this water-body at several places right from Branwar to Kralpora (30 kms stretch). Chadoora town is the main source of making Doodh Ganga water impure as scores of lavatories and washrooms open into Doodh Ganga plus the dumping of Municipal Solid Waste further makes this water unhygienic. The local Municipality of Chadoora has no identified Landfill site, with the result municipal authorities also dispose of their garbage unscientifically.
Wular lake
The Municipal Committee Bandipora dumps all the municipal solid waste collected from this North Kashmir town on the banks of Wullar lake at Zalwan Nussu which is a small hamlet located within municipal limits. In-fact I have taken up this issue at highest forum ie National Green Tribunal (NGT). In my petition before NGT New Delhi I had mentioned about the unhealthy & illegal practice adopted by Municipal Committee Bandipora which is not only violating MSW Rules 2016 but is also destroying this world famous wetland. Dozens of species of migratory birds visit Wullar lake in winters who come all the way from central Asia, Eastern Europe, Siberia and China. When NGT sought a response from the District Administration Bandipora and Municipal Committee Bandipora, NGT was informed in writing that solid waste at Nussu Zalwan site has been buried in trenches and covered by earth-filling. This is completely an illegal act and one can imagine what kind of officials Government has posted in civic bodies who are ignorant of the fact that municipal solid waste cannot be buried under soil without proper treatment.
When I contacted Executive Officer of Municipal Committee Bandipora early this year he said an alternate site measuring around 4 acres has been identified and is being used for garbage disposal away from Zalwan site. When I asked for the name of the village, the officer could not respond as the said the place is around Zalwan only. The officer was also ignorant of the fact that it was illegal to bury the waste under the soil. Local residents, on the other hand, refute the claim of Executive Officer and allege that municipal solid waste continues to be dumped near the wetland. The local Auqaf Committee along with the concerned ward councillor have written a letter to Chairperson of NGT, copy of which is available with me. As I write this piece the MC Bandipora has not stopped illegal dumping of municipal solid waste?
Ferozpur River
Due to non-availability of a scientific landfill site in Magam town of Budgam district, the Municipal Solid Waste collected around the municipal limits of this town is dumped by near the banks of Ferozpur river which passes through this town. From last 10 year MC Magam has been requesting authorities to provide them land for creating a scientific landfill site, but that seems to be not a priority issue for Government and people are forced to drink contaminated water. It is so unfortunate that water from the same waterbody is consumed by dozens of villagers downstream especially the residents of Alamdarpora Magam, Mallabuchan, Malmooh, Tonjiheran, Tantraypora, Hagerpora, Gund e Qasim etc. Many residents in these villages lift the water directly from Ferzopur river through pipes with the help of electric motor pumps as Govt has failed to provide piped drinking water in many areas of Magam and Pattan. A team of five doctors from Sub District Hospital Magam a few years back prepared a report raising their concern about the outbreak of waterborne diseases due unscientific garbage dumping near Ferozpur river but the report had no takers. Irfan Ali Banka a local social activist has been working tirelessly on the protection of Ferzopur river from garbage dumping. He launched a campaign on this issue few years back, but he says authorities don’t give a damn to his repeated pleas. Banka who has done his M Tech and Masters degree in Anthropology says that in his Master’s Project preliminary survey on the anthropological study of river Ferozpora affecting people revealed that more than 90 % of people using water from this river towards Magam downstream have been affected and people mostly suffer from skin and gastrointestinal ailments
Rajouri & Poonch
Despite a ban imposed by District and Sessions Court in year 2012, the unscientific dumping of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) continues in Rajouri town. Locals allege that Municipal Committee Rajouri (MCR) also dumps solid waste around Rajouri river which is polluting the water. Rajouri like other towns has no scientific waste management plant. Many years back a local NGO registered a case in local district and sessions court. The court banned unscientific waste disposal, but after some months when the said judge got transferred the illegal garbage dumping again started in town. Same is the situation in Poonch town. In June 2018 I visited Poonch on the request of the local district magistrate. He had organised a meeting of district officers during which I delivered a talk on scientific disposal of MSW. It was shocking when I was shown a huge garbage dump site created by the local municipal council on the banks of the Poonch river. The biomedical waste collected from the local government district hospital is also dumped near the river. When it rains, this toxic waste is washed away thus contaminating the water in the river. Ironically the same water from Poonch is lifted by the Public Health Engineering Department (PHE) at many places in Poonch district and supplied to people after some filtration and bleaching processes. This does not make water fit for drinking as MSW contains very hazardous bacteria and viruses. People in towns like Mirpur and Kotli located across Line of Control (LoC) in also receive contaminated water in summers
Conclusion
It is not possible to highlight all the water bodies that are being used as garbage dump sites by Municipal bodies across J&K, but I can say with authority that Municipal institutions of Ramban, Udhampur, Kulgam, Sopore, Kupwara and many others are involved in this heinous crime. I can’t only blame these Municipal institutions as authorities don’t provide them necessary land for scientific disposal of waste. The government needs to decentralize its waste management system and establish small landfill sites at different locations to ensure water bodies are not used for garbage dumping. People who have some land available around their house should be motivated to undertake in-house composting of organic waste. Financial allocation for sanitation, waste management and supply of safe drinking water has to be increased.
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