Kupwara: This north Kashmir’s frontier district is without a single garbage dumping site and the waste material is being dumped either on roadsides or the water bodies.
As per official record, about 11 tons of garbage is collected daily from main town Kupwara. This garbage is later dumped in water bodies or roadsides.
The famous Lolab Valley in Kupwara is also the worst affected by the dumping of garbage in it. The Lolab river body, which flows from the higher ranges to main market Kupwara, is getting more polluted with each passing day.
Expressing serious concern and strong resentment, the people of the area particularly from the Malik Mohallah, Lolab Sumo Stand, police chowki and Geer Hach, said the routine dumping of garbage in river bodies has made their life a hell. “Now, we are inhaling bad air and using filthy water,” they said.
“We used to fetch this water for household activities; even used to bath there but now the river has been polluted to the fullest. There are insects found and the foul smell is emanating from the whole area,” Lateef Ahmad, a local resident of Geer Hachi, told INS.
Another resident of Malik Mohallah said due to the foul smell, many diseases have spread in the area. “Our children are worst sufferers. We never thought authorities would be such indifferent towards the environment. They openly dump waste material into the river,” he said. “To inhale the foul smell has now become a routine for us.”
The polluting of river has also endangered the annual production of fishes of this Lolab water body, a senior citizen told INS.
He said decades ago, people used to get water from open water bodies for all household uses including the drinking. “Now, nobody uses rivers for household purposes.”
He also said the dumping of garbage along roadsides has led to blockage of drains which results in the overflow of waste material. “This later makes a way into our houses,” he said.
“Polluting the water bodies is a matter of serious concern. It is a nature’s gift and we must take proper care of it; authorities must think before it is too late,” he added.
The shopkeepers of the main market Kupwara said the drainage system there is a failure as “most of the drains in main market are full of waste material and water also overflows”.
“Whenever it rains or snows, it is extremely hard for us to walk on roads as the waste material flows along water over main roads in the town,” the shopkeepers told INS.
The increase in roadside garbage dumping sites has also given rise to number of stray dogs in the town which pose a life threat to commuters, the shopkeepers added.
According to Municipal Committee Kupwara, many written applications have been forwarded to higher ups to locate a dumping site in the district but nothing has been done in this regard.
