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Eight former commissioners of the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) are likely to face legal action for their alleged role in the unscientific disposal of municipal solid waste at the Achan Saidapora landfill site in Srinagar’s old city.
The Jammu and Kashmir Pollution Control Committee (JKPCC) on March 18, 2025 submitted a list of the commissioners — who held office between 2017 and 2025, some now retired — to the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The tribunal was informed that civil proceedings under the Environment Protection Act, 1986, would be initiated against the officers.
The action stems from a case filed in 2023 by local environmental activists over ongoing pollution and mismanagement at the Achan landfill. On the tribunal’s orders, a joint inspection was conducted by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the National Wetlands Committee. Their findings, submitted to the NGT, revealed that more than 1.1 million metric tonnes (MT) of legacy waste had accumulated at the site, with approximately 450 MT added daily.
At a hearing on March 20, 2025, the NGT’s principal bench — comprising Justice Prakash Shrivastava (chairperson), Justice Sudhir Agarwal (judicial member) and Senthil Vel (expert member) — directed the current SMC Commissioner Owais Ahmad, to provide a written undertaking within 10 days, committing to the complete removal of the waste by March 2027.
“Commissioner, SMC, appearing virtually, has stated that he will furnish an undertaking and take the responsibility to ensure that within the said timeline the entire work is completed. Said undertaking will be furnished within 10 days,” the NGT order stated.
Ahmad assured compliance and also submitted that a leachate treatment plant (LTP) would become operational within a few months. The report by the inspection team had earlier flagged concerns about untreated leachate from the landfill polluting nearby groundwater and wetlands, including the ecologically sensitive Anchar Lake, which is connected to Dal Lake.
The commissioner’s affidavit also detailed immediate remediation steps, including the application of anti-odour chemicals, bio-enzymes and the plantation of 3,200 trees by June 2025.
During the hearing, JKPCC Regional Director Abhijeet Joshi told the tribunal that the agency was imposing an environmental compensation of Rs 12 crore on the SMC. He also confirmed that a complaint against the former commissioners would be filed within three weeks.
Also present during the proceedings were GM Kawoosa (counsel for J&K government), Raj Kumar (counsel for CPCB) and Itisha Awasthi (counsel for the petitioners).
“So far as, respondent-J&K PCC is concerned it has filed the reply dated March 18, 2025 disclosing the steps which are being taken to initiate civil action against the officers responsible for violation under the provisions of the Environment Protection Act, 1986,” the NGT order read.
These assurances have been met with scepticism by some. “We have been hearing promises of odour control and leachate treatment for the last 10 years, but the situation is deteriorating,” Badrul Duja, an environmental lawyer based in Srinagar’s old city, told this reporter. “Leachate from the landfill has severely damaged surrounding wetlands and agricultural land, while the unbearable stench has made life miserable for residents. The pungent odour spreads as far as 10 kilometres, affecting the entire old city of Srinagar, particularly from May to August, leaving residents frustrated and helpless.”
Local residents said the environmental degradation has impacted their livelihoods and health. “Unscientific dumping has damaged around 600 to 800 acres of farmland,” claimed Wahid Ahmad, local a resident. “Our vegetables and milk are rejected in the market due to contamination fears. The water from borewells and tubewells is toxic. The NGT is our last hope.”
