BUDGAM: The District Administration Budgam today organized a one-day District-Level Action Workshop on “Banning Open Waste Leaf Burning and Establishing Composting Alternatives” to sensitise field-level functionaries and promote practical alternatives to the burning of leaves and agricultural residue during the autumn and pre-winter period.
Deputy Commissioner Budgam, Athar Aamir Khan, chaired the workshop. The programme was attended by
Vasu Yadav, Chairman, J&K Pollution Control Committee; Khursheed Alam, Director, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Government of India; JD Planning, ACP Budgam, Chief Agriculture Officer Budgam, Head KVK Budgam, all BDOs and Executive Officers, besides other concerned officers and stakeholders.
Representatives from NGOs, progressive farmers, Civil society members and functionaries from Mission YUVA also participated in the workshop.
Addressing the workshop, the Deputy Commissioner stressed the need for a coordinated and sustained effort to eliminate open burning of leaves, solid waste and agricultural residue. He called for a zero-tolerance approach towards such practices and directed field functionaries to strengthen awareness, monitoring and community participation.
The DC emphasized source segregation of waste and urged households to adopt family-level composting pits or make use of community composting facilities for managing biodegradable waste. He said the focus should be on providing citizens with practical and accessible alternatives so that organic waste is composted or scientifically processed instead of being burnt or dumped.
Chairman J&K Pollution Control Committee, briefed participants about major sources of air pollution and highlighted the importance of scientific waste management. He stressed segregation of waste at source and urged departments, local bodies and citizens to ensure that solid waste is not burnt.
Director, MoEFCC, Government of India, underscored the importance of coordinated action at the grassroots level, effective implementation of environmental regulations and sustained public awareness.
A detailed presentation by BDO Chadoora highlighted the composting initiatives and decentralized methods being promoted by the District Administration, including community and household composting pits.
Chief Agriculture Officer, Head KVK Budgam, social activists and Financial Literacy Expert, also shared their views on the harmful effects of open burning and measures for sustainable management of agricultural and biodegradable waste.
The workshop stressed the active involvement of Panchayati Raj Institutions, Urban Local Bodies, field functionaries and community organizations in promoting source segregation and decentralized composting.
