Category: Environment

Environment

Srinagar swelters as mercury goes beyond 30°C

Editor

With mercury constantly remaining above 30°C, Srinagar is reeling under sweltering heat. The mercury in the city has been above 30°C for the past one week and is likely to remain same for the next at least five days. The day temperature over the past week has been slightly higher than the average temperature for this time of the year, the peak of summer season. In the past two days, the city registered a high of 30.2°C yesterday and 32.2°C on Saturday. The abysmal precipitation in the city during recent…

Read More

Solid Waste Management in Srinagar still on paper

Editor

May become impediment for implementation of Smart City project More than 13,000 metric tonnes of solid waste that is produced in Srinagar every month may become one of the main challenges for the successful implementation of the Smart City project in the summer capital. For the past many years, the government has failed to address the menace of solid waste as nearly 450 metric tonnes of solid waste is produced in the city every day and is dumped in the heart of Srinagar in Achen, the only open dumping site…

Read More

Governor NN Vohra briefed on Jhelum flood recovery project

Editor

Sundeep Kumar Nayak, Chief Executive Officer, Jhelum and Tawi Flood Recovery Project, called on Governor NN Vohra here today. Nayak briefed the Governor about the status of ongoing works to support the recovery and increase disaster resilience in the project areas along with the restoration of public service infrastructure. The Governor advised Nayak to ensure the timely completion of all projects, with particular attention to strengthening disaster risk management systems and institutions so that the project benefited the entire affected region. Meanwhile, S Khurshid-ul-Islam, Course Coordinator, J&K Institute of Management,…

Read More

Chalk out ways to check Dal Lake pollution: High Court

Editor

Pointing out that nitrates, phosphates and other nutrients were present beyond the permissible limits in the Dal Lake, the High Court today directed the Lakes and Waterways Development Authority to check the sources of these pollutants rather than focusing on weed-cutting. A division bench of the court headed by the Chief Justice also observed that the pH value of the lake water was high which meant that the water was alkaline in nature. “You have to apply your mind on how it can be controlled. These (nutrients and pH) increase…

Read More

Govt in slumber to prevent 2014-like floods: High Court

Editor

Observing that nothing has improved on ground, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court has pulled up the state government for being in slumber to avoid 2014-flood like situation. Hearing a Public Interest Litigation seeking preservation of water bodies in Kashmir, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Badar Durrez Ahmad and Justice Ali Muhammad Magrey observed that government’s inefficiency and negligence led to floods in 2014 causing huge havoc by taking many lives and washing away properties. “But you are still in deep slumber as nothing has improved on ground level.…

Read More

Admit Dal area has shrunk: High Court to Lake Authority

Editor

Asks it not to hoodwink people; rejects old maps presented by officials Rejecting the maps of Dal Lake, which were presented to it by an official of the Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA), the High Court today told the lake authority that it should not hoodwink the public and admit shrinkage of the lake area due to encroachments and pollutants. These observations were made by a division bench of Chief Justice Badar Durrez Ahmed and Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey, which is hearing a PIL about the lake conservation. The…

Read More

Jhelum Dredging: All eyes on Govt as private firm misses another deadline

Editor

A Kolkata based dredging firm has again disappointed public and government by failing to meet the target of Jhelum de-silting after its contract was extended in January this year. The dredger installed near Zero Bridge here remained dysfunctional in the month of April while locals and eyewitnesses said that no effort was made by the company to compensate the already lost time. The contract for dredging of river Jhelum in Srinagar ended in January 2017. At the time the firm had dredged out only around one lakh cubic meters against…

Read More

Rains lash Kashmir, bring respite to Jammu

Editor

Intermittent rains lashed Kashmir on Tuesday even as weatherman predicted more precipitation in next 24 hours. The intermittent rains started in Kashmir on Tuesday afternoon and continued till evening. MET officials said Srinagar recorded 1.0 mm , Qazigund 2.4 mm, Pahalgam 14.2 mm, Kupwara 0.6mm, Kokernag 29.2mm and Gulmarg 6.6mm of rainfall. Pertinently, weather turned pleasant due to rain on Monday afternoon much to the delight of the people in Kashmir. MET officials said that the night temperature surged and settled at 7.3 degree, against seven degree recorded yesterday. The…

Read More

High Court directs LAWDA to act promptly against encroachments in Dal Lake

Editor

Observing that it shall have to dispel impression that it is not a party to the encroachments, Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Friday asked Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA) to act dedicatedly against encroachments in and around Dal Lake here to save the water body for posterity. “By dedicated activities and action with commitment, they shall have to dispel impression among the masses that they are not party to the encroachments,” a division bench of Justices Muhammad Yaqoob Mir and Dhiraj Singh Thakur said. The bench which was…

Read More

Authorities restart axing Chinars for grade separator

Editor

11 more Chinars to be felled between MA Road- Radio Kashmir stretch Throwing environmental norms to wind, authorities have once again started axing Chinars between Radio Kashmir junction and MA Road for constructing the grade separator on this stretch. Pertinently, axing Chinars to pave way for the grade separator earlier this year was stopped following massive public outcry. Authorities had planned to axe 11 Chinars on the stretch out which seven were felled earlier in January while rest are being axed now. The felling of Chinars has been entrusted to…

Read More