Chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Climate Action Group (JKCAG), Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat, has welcomed the statement of Commissioner Secretary, Housing and Urban Development Department (HUDD), Mandeep Kour, wherein she said government officials, especially municipal officials, cannot preach cleanliness unless they practise it themselves through home composting of biodegradable waste.
Mandeep Kour made the remarks while speaking to the media on the sidelines of a function organised at Amar Singh College, Srinagar, where the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) launched the Swachhta Internship Programme.
The Commissioner Secretary said people keep talking about cleanliness and sanitation, but unless they become serious about managing waste at home, tangible change cannot be achieved.
“How many of us are managing waste at home? I ask my Commissioner, Srinagar Municipal Corporation, and other officers, are you doing home composting of waste? We can only preach when we practise this,” Mandeep Kour said.
Dr Raja Muzaffar also hailed the Bandipora district administration’s decision to make home composting of biodegradable waste mandatory for households with sufficient space around their homes.
He said such decisions are necessary and government officers must start home composting of waste first, after which it can be enforced on citizens.
“We have been urging home composting for the last 10 years. In fact, I met the then Chief Secretary, B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, in 2018 on this issue and over the last 10 years I have written multiple articles on the subject. The government has woken up late, but it is never too late,” Dr Raja Muzaffar said.
He demanded that a formal government order be issued making home composting mandatory for all municipal officers, Rural Development Department officials, teachers and other government officials.
“This can then be followed by citizens as well. If these stringent decisions are not taken, our rivers, streams and open spaces will get choked with trash,” he said.
