Sushma Rani
I refer to the “Notice for Public in General” by J&K State Pollution Control Board printed on back page DE dated Dec. 23, 2015 and submit that it is the high time we JKians should understand the need to manage our household bio-degradable and bio-non-degradable waste in a prescribed manner in our own best interests. On the one hand we are talking of developing J&K State as a major tourist hub of India while heaps of waste, particularly household, is a regular feature in almost every street of the city offering a welcome foul smell to passersby. Plastics/ polythene wrappers can be found at every feet of the city area. People are often seen littering their human waste beside the hawker’s rehari offering fruit juice, etc. People from different parts of the country merge at B C Road to board further for northern and western parts of the State, do not have any other option to ease themselves than in open air. So many times I have noticed empty water bottles and covering of bananas being thrown on the road out of a moving vehicle.
All these are just light observations as there are so many other factors also contributing to the ugly scene of our cities. In the light of above I offer few suggestions which shall definitely need the cooperation from both public as well as Govt agencies.
* Suitable capacity good looking dust bins must be installed in every street of the city and cost of the same should be collected from the residents of that street. It is not a very big deal. I think every responsible citizen would come forward. When their own stake is involved everyone will take good care of the installation. There should be two kinds of dustbins- one red colour meant for inorganic waste and another, green meant for vegetable and organic waste. The organic waste should be handed over to Agriculture department for preparing vermi-compost which can further be sold to the farmers as organic fertilizer.
* The garbage from those dustbins should be collected on daily basis by municipality and be dumped in a bigger dustbin in the Mohalla for onward disposal by the Municipal department. The cost for the same should be calculated and contributed by municipality and people of the area in an agreed proportion.
* Suitable number of toilet booths on “use and pay” basis should be installed in various areas like bus-stands, railway stations and other identified locations. Again the waste should not be allowed to flow through nallahs, but should be collected and disposed off in a befitting manner. Littering at public places and in open should be made an offence in the same manner as the smoking is. And the responsibility for cleanliness of these booths should be determined and fixed. The venture can be outsourced also which will create more employment. Agriculture department should explore the possibilities of converting human urine thus collected, into organic pesticides as has been successfully done by farmers practising organic farming in Sikkim State.
* In the same manner, throwing of wastes out of moving vehicle should be made an offence. Public awareness through hoardings, radio announcements should be made for the same. Continuously educating our masses about cleanliness will play a vital role in eradicating the pollution and throwing wastes in open. Municipality people in plain clothes should lay a naka at vulnerable sites and challan the offenders throwing wastes in open in the un-prescribed manner.
* A circular should be issued to all the Schools in the State to teach the children during school assemblies all these lessons so that their thinking towards cleanliness can be developed over a period of time.
* It should be made mandatory for every business house who is painting their respective advertisement on private walls in the city to paint a message about cleanliness alongside their main business message.
* My aforementioned suggestions shall not be final in the matter as in due course many more ideas shall be generated once we make a beginning. But my submission is let us at least make a beginning.
( The author teaches at Govt. Girls Hr Sec. School, Jakh (Samba)
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