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| Despite getting penalized, MC Udhampur continue to dump disposal along river Tawi | | |  ASHWANI SHARMA
EARLY TIMES REPORT
UDHAMPUR, May 6: It was almost six months back when Jammu and Kashmir Pollution Control Board (PCB) had asked the Municipal Council (MC) Udhampur to pay Rs 1.39 crore compensation for polluting the environment by resorting to illegal and unscientific dumping and disposal of solid waste at the bank of river Tawi near Jekhani.
The PCB’s first of its kind major action was necessitated to implement the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT’s) landmark directions; however, it seems the MC Udhampur has not learnt any lesson even after getting penalized as the local body is still continuing with the practice of illegal dumping along river Tawi.
Though the MC Udhampur didn’t pay the amount of compensation as it challenged the matter in the court of law but it don’t give the Council a liberty to indulge in indiscriminate dumping and disposal of solid waste near river Tawi.
“The dumping area of the town should be there where it is in least contact with open air. It should be somewhere out of the town or may be underground but Municipal Council Udhampur has made Jakheni on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway as dumping yard which is just 3 kms away from the main city,” said a retired teacher.
“Most importantly the portion where the dump is thrown connects with the river Tawi, the water of which is used for the domestic purposes by the residents of the town, but municipal council has been continuously dumping the waste into it, thereby keeping thousands of lives at risk,” he added.
He said that the people of Udhampur have made numerous complaints on this count to the district administration as well as municipal authorities but they didn’t pay any heed.
“We appeal to LG GC Murmu to look into the matter personally and direct the authorities to shift the dumping yard along river Tawi to Mand as was envisaged by the then Deputy Commissioner Yasha Mudgal, who even had allotted a piece of land to the Municipal Council for the purpose,” he said.
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