Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Feb 25: Kandi Belt Movement has strongly condemned the illegal move of the Jammu Municipal Corporation to dump garbage in Kot-Bhalwal, a highly populated area of Jammu district in violation of Solid Waste Management Rules.
People of Kot-Bhalwal and adjoining villages have been protesting for the last about fifteen days against the illegal dumping of garbage by JMC but administration has paid no heed. Kandi Belt Movement, a body of the locals, has threatened to intensify the ongoing stir if the Govt fails to take notice of the people’s demand.
Addressing a press conference here today, K D Singh, Chairman Kandi Belt Movement, said that JMC identified the land for dumping of garbage at Bhalwal in the year 2004 but after representations and protests by locals, Government gave in writing that no garbage will be dumped in the area as it is highly populated.
He said that in 2011, Government again tried to dump garbage at Bhalwal forcibly but the attempts were foiled by the local residents. The then Dy CM and officers of JMC agreed to shift the dumping site to some alternate place as the area nearby had University, College, Schools, Mandir, Masjid, Madarasa, Gurudwara, Church etc. and was thickly populated.
K D Singh said it was very unfortunate that from February 2018, JMC in violation of Solid Waste Management Rules and State Pollution Control Board rules has again started dumping about 200-250 trucks of solid waste in Bhalwal area. He said that incidents of people getting affected by serious diseases like Cancer, T.B. are already increasing in the Kot Bhalwal area due to already existing more than 100 brick kilns in the area and JMC is trying to add to this pollution.
K D Singh alleged that the local MLA and Minister for Health was approached by the local residents but he did not show any concern for the people of the constituency. He appealed Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, Dy Chief Minister and Incharge HUDD, Dr Nirmal Singh to intervene into the matter and redress the burning issue of people of not only Kot-Bhalwal but adjoin areas of Muthi, Domana, Purkhoo, Mishriwala, Ghrota, Burn, Akhnoor, Raipur, Bantalab, Chinore, Roopnagar etc otherwise people would be forced to intensify their agitation.
Others present in the press conference, included ex-Sarpanches Gurbachan Singh, Narinder Singh, Kuljeet Singh, Rajdev Singh, Pratap Singh, Fakir Chand and social activists Ram Mohammad, Advocate and Kulbhushan Singh, Baba Chanchal.
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