Srinagar, July 29 (KNS): The Rural Development Department on Monday presented the draft Sustainable Sanitation and Fecal Sludge Management Policy for rural areas of Jammu and Kashmir before the House Committee on Environment.
The meeting was held at the Assembly Complex in Srinagar and was chaired by Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly and Chairman of the House Committee on Environment, Abdul Rahim Rather. It was co-chaired by Minister for Agriculture Production, Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Cooperative and Election Departments, Javed Ahmad Dar.
Chairman of the Environment Committee, M.Y. Taragami, and Members of the Committee including MLA Anantnag Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed, MLA Uri Dr. Sajjad Shafi, MLA Sopore Irshad Rasool Kar, MLA Chanapora Mushtaq Guroo, MLA Devsar Peerzada Firoz Ahmed, MLA Kokernag Zafar Ali Khatana, and MLA Gulab Garh Khurshid Ahmed also attended the meeting.
Commissioner Secretary, Rural Development Department, Babila Rakwal; Director General Rural Sanitation, J&K, Anu Malhotra; Secretary Assembly J&K, Manoj Kumar Pandit; Director Rural Development Department, Shabir Hussain Bhat; and other senior officers were also present.
A detailed presentation was given to the Committee members, outlining the proposed operational framework, institutional arrangements, funding mechanisms, and monitoring systems for rural sanitation under the draft policy. The policy aims to establish structured operations and maintenance systems, ensure safe containment and treatment of fecal sludge, and promote environmental sustainability in rural areas.Click Here To Follow Our WhatsApp Channel
Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said, “Sanitation is a critical aspect of public health, and it is our responsibility to ensure that our rural areas have access to safe and hygienic sanitation facilities. I am confident that the policies we are developing will make a significant impact on the lives of our people.”
The Speaker appreciated the RDD Minister for initiating a consultative process before the formal notification of the policy. He said this approach would help incorporate key suggestions from stakeholders, making the policy more practical and aligned with ground realities.
The Chairman of the House Committee, while appreciating the draft policy, informed the members that the Committee would further deliberate on it and finalize the suggestions to be incorporated before its notification.
During the discussions, Committee members emphasized the need for active community participation in policy implementation and monitoring, starting sludge treatment plants on a pilot basis before scaling up to all blocks in a phased manner, creating mass awareness about safe sanitation practices, strengthening village-level institutions for operations and maintenance, and ensuring convergence of schemes to secure adequate funding support for rural sanitation infrastructure. (KNS)