The High Court has sought a fresh Action Taken Report (ATR) with regard to setting up of dumping ground for the garbage generated from north Kashmir’s Sopore town.
A division bench of Chief justice Pankaj Mithal and Vinod Chatterji Koul directed Senior Additional Advocate General B A Dar to submit the report within a month which should be supported by affidavit of the Deputy Commissioner Baramulla himself.
The direction came in response to the submission by Dar that recently the new Deputy Commissioner Baramulla has recently taken over the charge and as such he may be allowed some more time for taking action vis-à-vis the issues raised in the Public Interest Litigation (PIL).
In February this year, the High Court had directed the committee headed by Deputy Commissioner (DC) Baramulla to report on whether the three spots for dumping of garbage suggested by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) were appropriate places for scientific disposal of solid waste generated in Sopore town.
The Court in today’s order said, “Nothing has been done to establish the dumping ground nor any steps have been taken by the Deputy Commissioner to ensure that the Municipal Corporation works effectively for lifting the garbage.”
A PIL has been filed by Central Auqaf Committee Tarzoo, Sopore through lawyer Shafqat Nazir, seeking directions for banning dumping of solid waste on the banks of Wular Lake and identification of alternate place for disposal of the waste.
During a court visit, the division bench had already prohibited the dumping of the solid waste on the banks of Wular Lake near Tarzoo.