Anantnag , Jan 11 : The dumping of truck loads of waste at a treatment facility in Sarbal area of Pahalgam in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district has caused huge inconveniences to nearby residents and pedestrians.
The local residents told Greater Kashmir that foul smell emanates from a fleet of trucks carrying garbage to the site.
“It feels nauseating here. The authorities are not even disposing off the waste properly”, said Sameer Ahmad, a local resident of Sarbal. Ahmad said that they brought the issue to the notice of concerned authorities umpteen times, but to no avail.
Many residents said that the municipal authorities sometimes keep the garbage in trucks for hours due to which stench fills the entire area.
“The facility has become a big nuisance for us. The pedestrians have to cover their faces while passing by the site”, said Mohmmad Majid, another resident.
Some local shopkeepers alleged that the municipal authorities threw waste into the Lidder river, which not only polluted the water but also posed a threat to the aquatic life.
Executive Officer Municipal Committee PahalgamTafveez Mir told Greater Kashmir that the facility is being managed by the Pahalgam Development Authority and there are no residential houses located close to the facility.
He, however, said that garbage sometimes remains in the trucks to wait for the facility to complete its management cycles. Mir also said that the allegations regarding throwing the waste into the Lidder river are baseless.
