Swacch Bharat Mission has undoubtedly improved the accessibility of people to basic civic facilities to the urban populations in several cities of the country and interestingly Srinagar the summer capital of Jammu & Kashmir has topped the list of 156 districts ranked best in civic facilities under Swachh Sarvekshan Grameen (SSG). Though Srinagar district attaining top slot in the list of ranking under Swachh Sarvekshan Grameen (SSG) is a remarkable achievement but it is not the end of the road to excellence in delivery of civic facilities for Srinagar City or the entire Srinagar district. Still civic facilities in Srinagar have not attained the optimum level which would give Srinagar administration the right to celebrate top position in the ranking of 156 districts under Swachh Sarvekshan Grameen (SSG). It is in place to mention here that civic facilities counted for rankings under Swachh Sarvekshan Grameen (SSG) include toilets, drain network, house to house waste collection, segregation of waste collected, solid waste management, preservation of water bodies and above all the general cleanliness. Looking at the facilities of toilets in Srinagar city the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) has though constructed few new toilet complexes for public convenience in some areas of Srinagar City but unfortunately several toilets built by the top civic body of Kashmir have been rendered defunct due to poor maintenance and upkeep. Similarly complaints about drainage system turning defunct in old residential colonies are rising year after year and proposals for building drainage systems in new residential colonies are not being cleared either for allotment of funds or allotment of works. Though improvement in segregation of waste collected from both the residential and the commercial areas and solid waste management has been noticed during last two years but improvement in preservation of top water body of Valley the world famous Dal Lak which is the domain of Lake Conservation & Management Authority (LCMA)is yet to be notice.
Cleanliness in Srinagar does not demand attention and intervention of Srinagar District Administration, Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and Lake Conservation & Management Authority (LCMA) only but also of top brass of the Housing & Urban Development and Tourism Departments. The perceptions about cleanliness of Srinagar city if changed for the purposes of improving the delivery of civic services would surely take tourism to new heights in Jammu & Kashmir.
Amid an unprecedented rise in the tourist inflow in Kashmir the improvement in civic facilities in summer capital Srinagar believed to be the epicenter of tourism in Kashmir deserves immediate attention and intervention of not only Srinagar District Administration but also specifically of Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and Lakes Conservation & Management Authority (LCMA). Cleanliness in Srinagar matters more for the purposes of tourist attraction than for the convenience of the local populations. So Cleanliness in Srinagar does not demand attention and intervention of Srinagar District Administration, Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and Lake Conservation & Management Authority (LCMA) only but also of top brass of the Housing & Urban Development and Tourism Departments. The perceptions about cleanliness of Srinagar city if changed for the purposes of improving the delivery of civic services would surely take tourism to new heights in Jammu & Kashmir.
