Dying Sukhnag River Craves For Immediate Attention

The Kashmir valley is blessed with mesmerising beauties of nature like crystal water bodies, snow clad mountains, lush green forests and meadows, beautiful pastures, pleasant and invigorating climate and what not. All the water bodies of Kashmir valley have been providing immense socioeconomic and ecological benefits however for the past many years, many mesmerising and fresh water bodies in the Kashmir valley began to die due to various anthropogenic activities particularly pollution and illegal, unscientific and rampant extraction of materials’ like sand, bajri and boulders. The illegal, unscientific and rampant extraction of materials together with unabated pollution led to dying of important water bodies. The River Sukhnag, one of the important water bodies in the Kashmir valley is also dying and losing its ecological potential particularly due to illegal, unscientific and reckless riverbed mining by illegal and unscrupulous contractors. The river Sukhnag originates in the Pir Panjal Range of the Tosamaidan and is the major tributary of the river Jhelum. It passes through many villages of district Budgam particularly Arizal, Zanigam, Sail, Beerwah, Ohangam, Arwah, Rathson, Aripanthan, Makhama, Batapora kanihama and Narbal. The River Sukhnag not only adds beauty to these villages but also has a great influence among the native people. It is a source of fresh water and livelihood to thousands of families in district Budgam. It also acts as a natural drainage system. The people of the surrounding River are very dependent on the agriculture and horticulture sectors as many irrigation canals arise from the River Sukhnag that irrigate vast areas of agricultural and horticultural land of hundreds of villages. It is an ecologically sensitive and biodiversity hotspot. Water is very important for all living organisms and without water, life cannot exist. Some important filtration plants have a source of fresh water from the said river that benefits lakhs of people in many districts. The famous Lar canal, Ahji canal, Sona Maen canal originate from the Sukhnag River at the Arizal, Zanigam and Beerwah villages respectively that have an immense socio economic and ecological importance. It has great potential for tourist attraction and generates crores’ of revenues for the state and people annually. For the past many years, The Sukhag River has been witnessing severe degradation and devastation at the hands of vested and illegal contractors and even careless people. The contractors are violating and flouting mineral rules 2016, fisheries act 2018, Water (prevention and control pollution) 1974, Environment Impact Assessment Rules and other environmental laws of the land. The violation of rules by reckless and unscientific extraction of sand, gravel and boulders from the fragile River Sukhnag led to extinction of all fish species and even springs in the adjoining villages’ dried and goodbye to people once for all. The use of heavy machines like JCBs and LNTs has caused great destruction to aquatic flora and fauna of the river. The habitat destruction of aquatic flora and fauna that once maintained ecological balance in nature have been lost. The devastation of the River Sukhnag due to illegal and unethical extraction is so severe that a single fingerling of any fish species cannot be seen in the river that once holds tonnes of fresh water fish of many species. Illegal mining activities in the river has also disrupted its water flow and has affected other water bodies of Kashmir like the Hokersar wetland called Queens Wetland and the Jhelum. According to experts, illegal mining in the river is fast silting up the Jhelum and Hokersar wetland. The illegal contractors are doing deep mining at sites particularly at curves, deep places etc. for their own interests. According to local fish license holders of Beerwah town, the destruction of the River Sukhnag with heavy machines destroyed fish breeding and feeding grounds and it snatched our livelihood and affected our families severely. It is pertinent to mention that contractors are taking undue advantage of their legal contracts and hoodwinking the eyes of concerned officials by using heavy JCBs and LNTs illegally and unethically for their personal benefits. Illegal contractors’ do not know what is right and wrong and what is good and bad. They also do not respect laws and guidelines of all the concerned departments and they are openly violating guidelines of sustainable mining and environmental laws.
The present condition of the River Sukhnag is very pathetic and its protective banks have been completely removed particularly from Ohangam village to Kanihama village. Removal of protective banks and embankments have put the lives of many villages at high risk of floods. The illegal riverbed mining activities have also changed the course of the Sukhnag River and it has left the river in a deserted condition. The present pace of illegal riverbed mining for a few months, will turn all-agricultural and horticultural land of hundreds of villages into waste and barren lands and people will struggle for a drop of drinking water. Population growth and urbanization has also put a heavy pressure on the River Sukhnag that increased its water pollution and deteriorated water quality. People without environmental ethics are equally responsible for the devastation of the River Sukhnag as unethical people are throwing biodegradable and non-biodegradable solid and liquid wastes into the river directly or indirectly. . Open drains from households of many villages directly drain into the river Sukhnag and even car washing by drivers in the sukhnag river has become the order of the day that further adds to its pollution and dying. At many sites, its banks are being used as duping sites particularly at the Makhama and Batpora villages. The drinking water supplied to many villages from the river is causing water borne diseases like typhoid, cholera, jaundice, intestinal problems to people particularly Ohangam, Chewdara, Rathson, and Makhama villages. The doctors posted at the Sub District hospital Beerwah always wonder about the rising graph of waterborne diseases of Beerwah tehsil villages. Civilised people of the area are fed up due to illegal mining and are seeking immediate attention of authorities’ for its immediate conservation. The farmers, civil society, civilized citizens, Environment policy group members, Green Citizen Council members, and other stakeholders think that illegal riverbed mining and extraction of sand, gravel and boulders from the river will not only decline agricultural productivity and affect the employment of people but will bring disastrous effects that prove very harmful for the people and the environment within few years. There is an immediate need for a multipronged strategy for the conservation of the Sukhnag. Otherwise, we will lose the precious asset that is on the verge of extinction due to rampant and illegal mining by unscrupulous contractors for their vested interests. The government alone cannot save the River Sukhnag from dying but people have to work in close coordination with the government, particularly inhabitants surrounding the River Suknag. The District Mineral Officer and Executive Engineer of irrigation and flood control department Budgam in particular and officials of other concerned departments’ in general should not allow any illegal mining in the river and they must speed up the process of field visits in order to check the unabated illegal mining and pollution of dying River Suknag. Enactment of more stringent laws, strict implementation of existing laws and heavy fines and imprisonment of violators of laws is the need of hour. Let’s hope that the government with the cooperation of members of the Environment Policy group, Green Citizen Council and civil society will save it from dying and extinction for the benefit of people and the environment.
(The author is a teacher at Govt Boys Higher Secondary School Beerwa Budgam. The views, opinions, facts, assumptions, presumptions and conclusions expressed in this article are those of the author and aren’t necessarily in accord with the views of “Kashmir Horizon”.)
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