A meeting of the Committee on Environment of Legislative Assembly was held here today under the Chairmanship of MLA, Shamima Firdous to discuss various issues regarding the safeguarding of environment while executing road projects in the state by the Public Works (R&B) Department and National Highway Authority of India (NHAI).Threadbare discussions were held on the measures initiated by the R&B Department to prevent harm to the environment while executing new road projects under various state and centrally sponsored schemes. Legislators, Mohammad Yousuf Bhat, Abdul Rahim Rather, Bashir Ahmed Dar, Mohammad Abbas Wani, Devinder Manyal, Anjum Fazili, and Neelam Kumar Langeh attended the meeting.The Committee directed the NHAI and other concerned authorities to complete the road widening works on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway especially from Banihal to Srinagar stretch without any escalation of time period.Concerned authorities were asked to dump the muck and other materials extracted from Banihal to Ramban at allotted dumping sites only as complaints have come up that executing agencies are not strictly adhering to set guidelines which can pose a threat to environment.
The Committee directed the concerned authorities to compensate those families whose houses and other properties got damaged due to road widening worksFurther, the Committee asked the concerned Department to submit a detailed report on the present status on Kishtwar-Sinthantop road upgradation and reasons of delay on the work.The members of the Committee gave various suggestions on how various Departments can take necessary steps to overcome and avoid environment pollution while executing development projects and emphasized upon the concerned to plant more and more trees to increase green cover in the State which will help restore ecological balance.The Committee directed the concerned authorities of NHAI to give preference to local youths in various developmental works.Development Commissioner Works, Bimal Tickoo briefed the Committee about the measures being adopted by the Department to protect, conserve and preserve the environment in the state during execution of different projects. Director, Environment and Remote Sensing, Om Prakash and General Manager (Tech)/Project Director, NHAI Vipin Sharma also briefed the Committee about necessary measures which have been initiated for protection of the environment.Secretary Legislative Assembly, M R Singh, Chief Engineers, SEs, Xens, besides senior officers of concerned Departments and Assembly Secretariat were also present in the meeting.