Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, June 9: High Court today asked the Advocate General of State to solve the jurisdictional conflict between Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA) over treatment of solid waste at Achan landfill site falling in outskirts of Srinagar.
A dispute arose between counsels of SMC and ERA on the jurisdictional powers vested upon the two with regards to dumping solid waste at the site.
SMC counsel Firdous Mir claimed the job of the Corporation is to collect solid waste as per rules, while on the other had ERA counsel Zubair Ahmad claimed the landfill site has to be looked after by SMC.
Witnessing the dispute, the Division Bench of the court comprising Chief Justice MM Kumar and Justice MH Attar directed the Advocate General M I Qadri, to intervene in the matter and solve the jurisdictional conflict.
Expressed its displeasure, the court warned both SMC and ERA to obey the rules of 1986 Act and the Rules of Municipal Solid Waste 2000.
“We are constrained to observe that there is no complete compliance of the Rules of 2000 which cover every step for the various authorities to follow. We wish to remind the authorities of ERA as well as SMC that if necessity arises we will not refrain from passing any order under Section 15 of the Act,” the bench said.
The court had previously observed that whosoever fails to comply with or contravenes any of the provision of 1986 Act or the Rules of Municipal Solid Waste 2000 would be punished with imprisonment of five years or with fine extended to one lakh or with both under Section 15 of the Environmental Protection Act.
The court had also appointed Registrar Judicial of High Court Ajaz Ahmad Mir as Commissioner for visiting the site and had asked him to submit his report about the landfill site.
The Commissioner in his report has stated the officials on the spot had claimed that leachate plants were catering to the requirements.
He had suggested that it has to be augmented on scientific lines to ward off any future catastrophe which is likely to be caused by the garbage on spot.
He further stated that accepting the claim of concerned officials would be totally unsafe in absence of opinion of the expert in the field.
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