Sewage dumped in Jhelum

Forget that Jhelum will ever regain its pristine purity. Forget that the administration in the State will ever succeed in treating water bodies in a way to rescue them from pollution and disaster. We say it because there is absolute lack of aesthetic sense not only among the people but also among the authorities that are supposed to help restore purity to the bountiful nature of Kashmir. The curse of Jhelum, known to Kashmiris as Veth, abbreviate of Vitasta, is that most of its course lies through very fertile plains of the valley where habitations have grown during the course of time. The ancient Kashmiris attached religious sanctity to the objects of nature especially the water bodies and even the trees and plants. Sanctimony was given to them precisely for preserving their pristine purity and beauty of the landscape. But once the element of sanctimony disappeared, man emerged in his wild nature. The old habit of defecating in open, on the banks of rivers and nullahs or in open fields and jungles continued with the people down to present day. It is only in recent times that the western concept of toilet came to India and became popular in the length and breadth of the country.
In a PIL case pertaining to polluting the water of the river that flows through the heart of the city of Srinagar, the Division Bench had observed that the status report submitted to it by the Irrigation and Flood Control Department was only sketchy and had left out some vital information on the question of pollution of the water. But in a recently submitted status report, the Chief Engineer of IFC Department has conceded that the sewage of 90 villages that are situated close to the three nullahs upstream Anantnag town is deposited in the nullahs and thus pollutes the water. Upstream of Anantnag to Verinag Jhelum is in the shape of nullahs called Sandran etc.
Why have not the concerned departments taken any action on repeated notices from the Irrigation and Flood Control Department? After all who is to be blamed to allow such health hazard in the Valley and remain complacent as if it does not matter an iota. Such a situation in any other country of the developing world would have invited the attention of one and all because it is a matter that has to be the concern of all citizens of the Valley. There are a number of water bodies in the Valley that are left to deteriorate owing to pollution and misuse. The strange thing is that for years at end all the attention has been focused only on one water body and that is the Dal Lake. Billions of rupees raised from various sources have been sunk for retrieving the purity of Dal Lake but without much success. Even the much talked about de-weeding of the Dal has never been a full success because the sewage and garbage emanating from house boats is still deposited into it. Government should have treated all important water bodies evenly. If that principle had been followed surely the 90 villages depositing sewage into the nullahs and then into the Jhelum would have been stopped long back.
Now that the matter has been made public and the court has taken cognizance of wanton destruction of ecology, we are not sure what measures the Government will take to stop discharging of sewage of these villages into the nullahs and then into the river. It will call for a comprehensive project with adequate funding. Is it possible for the Government to raise the funds and utilize these for the purpose of restoring Jhelum to its original purity? This seems very unlikely and as a result, pollution will continue as usual.

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