SRINAGAR: The Group of Concerned Citizens (GCC), Jammu and Kashmir, has expressed alarm over the government’s continued neglect of key ecological and governance issues in the region, including the degradation of Anchar Lake and the worsening environmental and public health crisis at the Achhan landfill site in Srinagar.
Pic: Bilal Bahadur
In a statement issued Wednesday, the GCC said that long-forgotten flood protection projects in the Valley “deserve to be picked again and pursued, with full force, to reach the project goals.” The group highlighted the deteriorating condition of Anchar Lake, describing it as “literally dying” in the absence of any check on encroachments and conservation efforts. “It has been left without care, as if it is nobody’s responsibility, and therefore a free-for-all,” the statement read.
Urging immediate intervention, the GCC called on the Government to notify Anchar Lake for care and protection under the Lakes Conservation and Management Authority (LCMA), warning that inaction would further threaten the region’s delicate ecological balance.
The group also raised alarm over the deteriorating conditions at the Achhan landfill site, terming it an “unfolding public health crisis.” The GCC linked the site’s toxic gas emissions with a surge in serious health issues including cancer, respiratory diseases, infertility, and allergies. In light of these concerns, the group proposed that the Government immediately commission an expert study into the nature and impact of emissions from the landfill. It recommended that the Departments of Social and Preventive Medicine at GMC Srinagar and SKIMS be tasked with conducting the investigation.
Beyond ecological concerns, the GCC reiterated its long-standing demand for the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, citing the latest events as yet another reason to address the political vacuum in the region. “These developments underline the imperative of restoring statehood to J&K without further delay, in the larger national interest, and in line with the orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court and assurances given by the Hon’ble Prime Minister and the Hon’ble Home Minister both inside and outside Parliament,” the statement read.
The GCC has consistently positioned itself as a civil society forum advocating for democratic rights, transparency, and environmental justice in Jammu and Kashmir. It called on the authorities to act decisively on all the flagged issues to safeguard public health, environmental stability, and democratic commitments.
