SRINAGAR: To ensure a sustainable Shri Amarnath Ji pilgrimage and achieve zero landfill goals, a significant quantity of wet and dry waste has been collected from different camp locations and enroute, and the same has been processed using appropriate scientific methods, during the first six days of the yatra.
A total of 15 waste processing facilities have been established on both axis. Eight processing facilities have been set up at the Baltal axis starting from Neelgrath to Upper Holy Cave and 7 processing facilities set up at the Pahalgam axis starting from Nunwan to Panchtarni.
The wet waste is processed using the conventional composting methods and the dry waste is processed by segregating it into different types of recyclable/non-recyclable waste and further processing it using the baling machines.
A total of 8 including 5 at Baltal Axis and 3 at Pahalgam axis number of vehicles have been deployed for the collection & transportation of waste at the base camp locations. More than 600 workers and nearly 25 management/supervisory staff have been deployed in both axis combined to handle day-to-day waste collection, transportation, and processing.
From June 27th till July 2nd, 2024 nearly 61.350 tonnes of waste has been handled. Out of this, 17.25 tonnes of wet waste (3.315Tonnes on Pahalgam Axis and 14.205 tonnes on Baltal Axis) has been put into the compost beds for composting of same. Further, 22.23 tonnes of dry waste (7.31 tonnes on Pahalgam Axis and 14.920 tonnes on Baltal Axis) has been processed after segregating them into various recyclable and non-recyclable streams such as PET, HDPE, LDPE, Cardboard, Multilayered Plastic, metals etc.
In addition, 21.60 Tonnes of inert & process rejects have been accumulated till now which will be disposed off through sending it to RDF utilizing industry by the service provider engaged for same.
Director General, Rural Sanitation, J&K said: “These figures highlight the effectiveness of our waste management strategy, which emphasizes the separate collection and processing of wet and dry waste to minimize environmental impact. The collaborative efforts of our service providers, volunteers, and pilgrims have been instrumental in maintaining the sanctity and cleanliness of the yatra routes.”
She further added that the department remain committed to upholding these standards throughout the pilgrimage, ensuring a zero-landfill experience for all participants.
