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| With crores coming in for the beautification of Jehlum, river continues to shrink, Illegal encroachments on river banks go unchecked | | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
SRINAGAR, MAR 24
With crores coming in for the beautification of the Jehlum, the once
sparkling river continues to shrink due to the pollution and massive
encroachments on its banks. This all goes despite the Water Resources
Regulation Act (WRRA) of the state legislature providing executive
powers to the concerned authorities to act against the offenders
remains in force.
Spanning over more than 150 km across the valley, the river is being
extensively polluted with illegal constructions go unabated on both of
its banks in many areas of south and North Kashmir under the nose of
the authorities.
Though state assembly few years back passed the Water Resources
Regulation Act providing executive
powers to the Flood control and Irrigation Department to come into
action against the people causing pollution to the river by any means,
no steps were taken by the concerned officials to save the river from
being shrunk.
Pertinently the act empowers the concerned authorities to demolish the
structures illegally constructed on the banks of the river and
register on spot challan against the person involved in the illegal
extraction or encroachment with out seeking permission from the law
enforcement agencies.
“The authorities after the act was passed sealed some entry points on
the river banks where the illegal extraction was being carried out but
not a single illegal structure on any of its banks was demolished
which are the more severe threat to the river than the extraction,”
said an official wishing anonymity.
Near Khanabal bridge, Guri and Bijbehara in Anantnag and Sangam,
Kakpora, Halmulla, Samboora and many other places in Pulwama the
unabated illegal constructions on the banks of Jehlum mock at the
claims of the governments’ Jehlum beautification project.
He also held the poor sewerage system responsible for causing
pollution to the river.
“In the absence of effective sewerage system all the drains from
Anantnag and Pampore across its banks flow directly into the Jhelum,
severely damaging its flora and fauna,” he said.
The locals accuse the concerned officials of being hand-in-glove with
the offenders.
“It is irony that despite our repeated representations to the
concerned officials to check the encroachments and the other causes of
pollution to the river they have not taken any concrete step. It seems
that the authorities are hand-in-glove with the offenders,” said a
group of residents of Anantnag.
They said that the encroachers who have come up with the illegal
constructions on the river banks are dumping all the waste collected
from from their houses into the river.
“Besides the house waste even the cow dung is being heaped on the
banks of the Jehlum which has rendered the its water badly polluted,”
they said. A top official of irrigation and flood control department
wishing anonymity said that crores of rupees came from the centre for
beautifying and saving the river but the money was not properly
utilised for the purpose. "Out of the money which flowed in for the
purpose the banks at few places in Srinagar were cemented but the
places where the river has shrunk to the fullest no steps were taken
to save it from further damage," the official said.
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