Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Jan 6: The High Court today directed the authorities to file a report on the maintenance and preservation of parks and gardens in Jammu and Kashmir and removal of encroachments and unauthorized constructions from them.
The Division Bench of Justice Sanjeev Kumar and Justice M A Chowdhary has sought a status report from the Department of Floriculture, Srinagar Municipal Corporation, Srinagar Development Authority and Divisional Commissioner Jammu in this regard.
Court directed the authorities to file a status report before the court indicating the follow up action that has been taken pursuant to the directions issued by the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir. “Further Divisional Commissioner, Jammu shall also file a status report on next date of hearing”, the DB directed.
The Divisional Commissioner Kashmir has directed all concerned Departments to submit the status report to his officer for its onward submission before the High Court. However, ,the Directorate of Floriculture, Srinagar Municipal Corporation and Srinagar Development Authority has been directed to submit the requisite report before the High Court directly after proper vetting by the office of the Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir.
All the stakeholders and concerned departments were directed to submit the physical and financial progress of the parks for the financial year 2022-23 under their possession and maintenance within a weeks’ time positively.
“The concerned Departments shall erect ramps on the entry points of all the parks so as to ensure an easy access for the specially abled persons”, read the report of Divisional Commissioner Kashmir.
The respondent-authorities are also directed that the Committee constituted by the Government under the chairmanship of Director Floriculture shall conduct the meeting periodically and submit quarterly ATR to the authorities within time as well.
The High Court had directed for taking effective steps for removal of encroachments and unauthorized constructions from all the parks and green spaces and submitting reports with regard to the progress of the work of Divisional Level Committees (DLC) of Jammu and Srinagar for preparing Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for mapping of parks and gardens in both cities.
The Divisional Commissioners of Kashmir and Jammu in their status reports had earlier submitted that in alignment with the mandate of 74 Constitutional Amendment Act issued by the Government wherein parks measuring less than 10 kanals of land (240 parks) stretched over an area of 756 kanals of land along with the permanent officers and officials were transferred to the respective Urban Local Bodies.
The Court was informed that the boundary walls of all parks are seen through with whip link, chains or reeling fences and almost all the parks and gardens of Department of Floriculture, Kashmir and Jammu are fenced by heritage stone brick walls.
The Court has already been informed that there is no encroachment in any of the parks and gardens maintained by the department as reported by the Floriculture Officer Jammu. “There is no plastic waste thrown scattered in the parks, the dust bins have been provided in the majority of the parks and needful shall be done to augment the same”, the Divisional Commissioner Jammu said.
He, further in his report, the had informed that toilet facilities are available for the parks in Housing Colony, Channi Himmat, which are being maintained by the Housing Board in coordination with civil society and parks in other housing colonies are being maintained by JMC.
“Effective steps are being taken by the Municipal Councils and Municipal Committees to ensure that no construction in violation of norms in any park within the limits of Municipal Councils and Committees is being carried out”, read the report.
The Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar was under direction to consider the feasibility of having at least a quarterly meeting of all the authorities responsible for maintaining and developing various parks and gardens including the heritage gardens so as to coordinate their working and to record the minutes thereof for submission before the court if necessary.
As per the information of Floriculture Department, there are about 361 parks and gardens in Srinagar, out of which 109 parks and 8 gardens total 117 are maintained by the Floriculture Department; 51 by the Srinagar Development Authority, 29 by the Srinagar Municipal Corporation, 93 by the Jammu & Kashmir Housing Board (Unit I & II), 24 by the Department of Irrigation and Flood Control and 47 by the PWD (R&B).
At the same time, the Chief Town Planner, Kashmir, vide his status report has indicated that as per the standards prescribed 570.5 hectares of land in Srinagar is needed for parks and green spaces whereas presently only 242.63 hectares is available.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
