Hotels sans STPs

Successive Governments in the State vex eloquent on developing tourism in the State to meet international standards. In the name of development of tourism in the State and in the name of modernization of tourism services, millions of rupees are budgeted and spent. If these spending were for the right purpose and with right procedure, one would say that our tourism industry is on the right track to move forward. However the ground reality does not support the contention of the authorities that we are really on the right track. A PIL has been filed before the High Court demanding that owing to lack of Sewage Treatment Plants in most of the hotels, guest houses and lodges in Jammu effluent flows into the river Tawi polluting its water and making it hazardous for use for drinking or for irrigation. Needless to state that Tawi is regarded a holy river by the people in Jammu region calling it Suryaputri or the daughter of the Sun. There are specific days in a year, when religion abiding people of Jammu come to its banks to take a dip in the holy water and make offerings. But their sentiments are grossly hurt when they find the effluent and filth polluting its waters. They are sorry for the abject apathy of the Government in enforcing the norms of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, which forbids polluting the water by allowing dirt and filth run into it.
There are hundreds of hotels, lodges and guest houses in the city thronged by visitors and customers round the year. But it is sad to say that no authority ever takes pains to ensure that these establishments fully implement the norms set forth by the above mentioned Act. Neither the Tourism Department nor the Jammu Municipal Corporation and Pollution Control Board has precise information about the number of these establishments and their details meaning the accommodation available and whether these have individual Sewage Treatment Plants or not. We understand that most of them do not have individual STPs. At the same time, the establishments which have less than 19 rooms accommodation are not required to have individual STPs but they have to ensure that the effluent are linked to the main STP for the area. The establishments that have more than 19 rooms are required to have their individual STPs. This notwithstanding most of the establishments are either without individual sewage or not linked to the sewage treatment plant. Obviously, the effluent from these establishments flows through the drains into the river which is the main cause of polluting the waters.
What is more surprising is that even many of the Government buildings and structures for which individual sewage treatment plant is mandated, do not observe the conditions imposed by The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.  The Division Bench has noted with concern that for the last two decades countless hotels, guest houses and lodges came up in the City of Temples and majority of such establishments have been contributing to the pollution of sacred River Tawi by allowing the effluent to flow into the river.  It has held three agencies of the State Government responsible for gross negligence of the ecology of the city of Jammu. These are the Pollution Control Board, Jammu Municipal Corporation and Tourism Department. Pollution Control Board has the mandate to ensure implementation of provisions of The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act while as Jammu Municipal Corporation is responsible for checking flow of effluent in the River Tawi. Similarly, Tourism Department is the agency handling the registration of hotels, guest houses and lodges. It is indeed a matter of great concern and regret why these three agencies neglected their responsibility and never took any action against the establishments violating the Water Act of 1974. How come the hotels, lodges and guest houses were given permission to function when they had not provided the individual sewage treatment plants? Usually having the individual sewage treatment plant is the first pre-requisite of a public building and the same has been neglected. It is true that the Court will order the owners of these establishments to establish STPs within a specific time but the fact is that the Government should pull up all the departments identified by the court for dereliction of duty.

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