SRINAGAR: Tourist destinations across Jammu and Kashmir witness thousands of visitors every day, particularly during the summer season. Brenwar in Haijin, which has emerged as one of the Valley’s popular tourist spots in recent years, is no exception. However, the sharp rise in tourist footfall has also led to increasing environmental degradation at the picturesque destination.
Over the past few months, photographs and videos circulating on various social media platforms have highlighted the adverse impact of unregulated littering. Plastic bottles, polythene bags, chip packet wrappers and aluminium foil food containers discarded by visitors have raised serious concerns over the protection and preservation of the area’s fragile natural environment.
Taking note of the issue, the Forest Department, in collaboration with the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) Chadoora, RTI activists, pony owners, media personnel and local volunteers, organised a large-scale cleanliness drive to remove the accumulated plastic waste from Brenwar. Forest officials, pony owners and volunteers worked together to clear the scenic landscape and prevent further environmental degradation.
The initiative also served as a reminder of the repeated appeals issued by authorities across Jammu and Kashmir, urging tourists to follow prescribed waste management guidelines while visiting tourist destinations and to avoid the use of single-use plastic.
Addressing the participants and the media, Range Officer Rameez Raja said, “Today we conducted this massive cleanliness drive in which people from different walks of life in Haijin participated. This effort has shown how, together, we can protect our natural environment and save it from degradation. I also request people visiting Brenwar, Haijin, to follow proper waste management guidelines. Anyone found violating the prescribed guidelines from today onwards will be liable to a fine, and legal action may also be initiated against them.”
He added that Brenwar belongs to everyone and stressed that protecting and preserving the destination is a collective responsibility.
As the cleanliness drive concluded, volunteers collected large bags of garbage, reflecting the scale of litter left behind by visitors. The initiative received widespread appreciation from local residents, who lauded the efforts of the Forest Department, district administration and all those who participated in the campaign.
With the number of tourists continuing to increase across destinations in Jammu and Kashmir, many participants said similar awareness and cleanliness drives should be organised at other tourist sites to safeguard the region’s natural heritage.
The authorities also appealed to shopkeepers operating near Brenwar to adopt environmentally friendly packaging materials, such as biodegradable paper-based alternatives, instead of plastic. They further urged vendors to encourage customers not to leave waste behind, but to carry it back and dispose of it responsibly in accordance with the prescribed waste management guidelines.
