SRINAGAR, Jammu and Kashmir: In the Kashmir Valley, nine solid waste management facilities and other developmental projects were inaugurated by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha of Jammu and Kashmir. News agency Kashmir News Observer reported that these projects were executed in modern scientific fields under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban), which is the flagship scheme of the central government.
The statement read, “Acting upon the clarion call of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make the urban areas Garbage Free, the Urban Local Bodies, Kashmir geared up for the establishment of facilities for Scientific disposal of waste. Besides, financial support & regular reviews by the J&K Government has enabled the Urban Local Bodies to proceed ahead in this direction.”
The action plan for the establishment of solid waste management for 40 urban local bodies of Kashmir has been approved for a cost of ₹239.74 crore for the total waste of 456 tonnes generated per day. The action plan further read, “9 Solid Waste Management facilities, with a cost of ₹12.79 crore have been completed in the ULBs of Achabal, Beerwah, Chadoora, Dooru-Verinag, Ganderbal, Qazigund, Shopian, Sumbal, and Tangmarg/ Kunzer and have been inaugurated today which will process 40 tonnes of waste per day.”
Each facility has a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) for dry waste which includes segregation of any mixed waste, bailing, and shredding facilities. There are also Compost Pits for processing wet waste.
The action plan added, “Over the past some years, the Urban Local Bodies have been significantly empowered to function as units of Local Self Government. The institution of the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act has further empowered the Urban Local Bodies on the developmental front to take up projects having vast public utilities and to create assets for strengthening the resource base of the ULBs.”
Other developmental projects include shopping complexes, marriage halls, community halls, drainage networks, the development of lanes, the development of transport facilities, and the development of public parks.
“16 such developmental projects costing ₹21.55 Crore have been inaugurated today and dedicated to the public. The implementation of some flagship schemes like SBM(U), AMRUT, PMAY-U, PM SVANidhi, etc further gave the ULBs an opportunity to widen the dimensions of their developmental activities and beneficiary-oriented programmes,” the report said.