Srinagar April 23 (KNS): J&K Pollution Control Board (PCB) after the intervention of National Green Tribunal  (NGT)has imposed a whooping penalty of more than sixty-four lakhs on Municipal Council Bandipora for the Municipal Solid Waste Rules 2016 violation.

The Municipal Council which was earlier a Municipal Committee has been dumping all the untreated Municipal Solid Waste near the Wullar catchment area at Zalwan. Several notices were reportedly issued to MC Bandipora by NGT as well as PCB which it allegedly didn't adhere to. 

Pertinently, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had also taken a serious note of this illegal waste dumping when social activist Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat filed a petition before the tribunal more than 2 years back. 
The NGT had already issued some orders directing Govt through Divisional Commissioner Kashmir and J&K Pollution Control Board to stop the illegal practice. 
Municipal Council Bandipora in its written response last year had told NGT that it was not dumping municipal waste at Zalwan area. 
The petitioner Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat in his counter-response through his counsels Advocates Rahul Chowdhary and Saurabh Sharma had told NGT that MC Bandipora was "lying" and produced photographic evidence and videos besides written statements of the locals. A local social activist associated with RTI Movement from Bandipora Mushtaq Ahmad Mir had also made a video at the Zalwan dumping site refuting the claims of Municipal Council Bandipora. This video has become viral on social media  

The Pollution Control Board vide its Order Number: 45- PCB of 2021 Dated: 9.02.2021 has directed the Executive Officer Municipal Council Bandipora to deposit a sum of Rs 64,12000 into Environmental Compensation Fund (ECF) account number 0023040510000001 operated by J&K Pollution Control Board now known as J&K Pollution Control Committee

Speaking to KNS Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat said he was happy to see this order 'but it is an irony that PCB didn’t put this order into the public domain for more than 2 months.'

“ PCB had given 45 days to MC Bandipora to deposit the compensation money into the EC Fund. Even after 2 months the concerned Executive Officer hasn’t deposited the money, the PCB needs to take up the case with DC Bandipora who will do the necessary recovery under J&K Land Revenue Act. The order for environmental compensation should have been made public by PCB soon after it was issued  “ said RTI activist. (KNS)