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Soz express concern over bad condition of water bodies in Srinagar

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Expressing concern over latest bad condition of some of the water bodies in Srinagar, former Union Minister and senior Congress leader Prof Saifuddin Soz on Saturday said he had proposed joint action by Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA), Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and Revenue department to restore pristine glory of these water bodies.

“It is very recently that I went to see the latest condition of some of the water bodies in Srinagar. I was extremely sad to see Khushal Sar, Gilsar and Anchar in a very bad shape”, Prof Soz said in a statement here Saturday afternoon.

He said one aspect of the debilitating situation of this landscape was the totally unchecked scale of illegal constructions of residential houses and other structures all around water bodies. I held my breath and imagined that this vast God-Given treasure of ‘Natural Resource’ belongs to no one, the statement said.

Prof Soz said the other aspect of this devastating situation is that no single Department of J&K Administration is responsible for this ‘Unlawful Activity’. The LAWDA has already taken a public stand that it is not responsible for what is happening around Gilsar, Khushal Sar and Anchar, he said.

I am told that the Act under which LAWDA was set up, does not give this responsibility to LAWDA, he said adding under these circumstances the Union Territory (UT) Administration could reasonably be advised to organize a Joint Action by various organs of the Government.

The LAWDA or the SMC could be tasked to initiate action as a Nodal Agency, he demanded and alleged that things are so bad that any initial action would be a welcome measure! “I, however, witness to a Silver Lining that wherever I went recently around these water bodies, a sizable number of people assured me that they would support any reformative action by the Government and/ or the NGOs,” he said.

UNI

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