River bed encroachments

Extraction of sand and stones from the river beds and grabbing of river bank lands continues unabated particularly in South Kashmir where many streams small and big flow. Big trucks have been seen moving down the river bed to collect precious sand and thus interfere in the flow of waters away from the banks. Several PILs have so far been filed in High Court and despite strict instructions issued by the High Court forbidding extraction of sand, stone or mineral from river and nullah beds, the illegal activity continues without relent and without impunity.
Not only this, a petitioner has submitted to the court that he is being harassed by the police naming SHOs of Soura and Zakura in the outskirts of Srinagar. He has alleged that these officers have vested interest and they do want him to pursue the case. The Court has taken serious note of this complaint. The petitioner says that despite court order, encroachments continue in various water bodies not only and necessarily River Jhelum. It has to be reminded that the Court has already directed all District Magistrates and Irrigation and Flood Control Department to remove the encroachments and construction from the major rivers more particularly river Jhelum, Lidder, Arpath, Brengi, Vaishav, Sandran, Vedivatroo, Rambiara Doodganga, small streams, springs and tributaries.
The point to be made is that despite court orders for vacating illegal encroachments from the  river beds and prohibiting extraction of sand, stones and minerals from the river bed, the illegal activities are continuing unabated thus throwing the court order to winds. The situation is becoming alarming. Concerned departments, particularly Irrigation and Floods Department, are not taking any serious view of this situation. After the great floods of 2014, the Government should have learnt a lesson that encroachments of river banks are a serious irregularity and one of the causes of floods in the valley. Actually a nexus has developed between the land grabbers and some of the official functionaries and maybe there are strong political personalities also interested to draw benefit from all these illegal activities.
In final analysis unless the Government takes the bold and strong decision of putting an end to illegal encroachments along the river banks and orders dismantling and eviction of these encroachments, the danger of recurring floods cannot be ignored.

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