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| Structures come up in Sonamarg despite ban | | Tourist spots in Kashmir turning messy | |  Mohammad Sarfaraz
Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, Sept 14: Despite a blanket ban imposed by the High Court on construction work at tourist spots in Jammu and Kashmir, illegal structures are coming up in tourist resort of Sonamarag in central Ganderbal district.
"If we talk of Kashmir valley, all places are of tourist attractions, but illegal structures and felling down of forests is rampant, and the authorities concerned appear least bothered. The hoteliers and land brokers are constructing new structures in Sonamarag area", said sources.
They said that last year the court directed the department concerned not to construct anything in Sonamarag area, as the ecosystem had got imbalanced or rather disturbed, but to no avail.
Though there is a complete ban on polythene in entire Sonamarg area, the tourists are seen throwing these non-biodegradable items in an open space, with the result these tourist spots have turned hazardous for the tourists, sources informed.
However, some tourists from Srinagar and South Kashmir said that the Sonamarg Development Authority (SDA) and other agencies must stop giving fresh permissions for raising concrete buildings as they give shabby look and the pristine areas are turning into malls.
"We must say that the situation is alarming as buildings are coming up in meadows, be it any tourist place in Kashmir valley. In Sonamarag area the glaciers are receding and mountains are crumbling which is a major cause of global warming that we are witnessing today, otherwise the weather conditions were pleasant in Kashmir in the past but it is altogether different now", said a tourist Abdul Khaliq.
A group of tourists said that one can imagine that Thajwas glaciers are melting at an alarming speed and it can further prove disastrous if constructions are not stopped immediately. |
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