Onlykashmir.in News Desk
Srinagar, Sep 23: A coalition of civil society and community organisations has welcomed MLA Tanvir Sadiq’s proposed legislation on dignified, eco-friendly housing, but demanded that the measure be expanded beyond Dal Lake to cover traditional water-dependent communities across Jammu and Kashmir.
The J&K RTI Movement, Nature Conservancy Alliance (NCA), Forest Rights Coalition-J&K (FRC-J&K), Gujjar Bakkerwal Foundation, Civil Society for Justice and Development (CSJD), Wular Fisherfolks Union, Indigenous Fisherfolks Foundation and Himalayan Pastoral Foundation said conservation and housing rights should not be treated as competing interests.
Their central message: “Do not make people homeless in the name of saving nature, and do not destroy nature in the name of giving people homes.”
The groups demanded explicit inclusion of communities linked to Wular Lake, Hygam Wetland and River Jhelum, along with other wetlands, water bodies and ecologically sensitive areas. They also called for traditional occupation, customary use, livelihood and community evidence to be considered while defining a “traditional dweller.”
Dr Shaikh Ghulam Rasool said people living around lakes and wetlands are part of their history, economy and ecological knowledge, arguing that conservation should enable people and nature to coexist.
The organisations also called for an enforceable Eco-Friendly Housing and Conservation Code, including a ban on land filling, protection of natural water channels, sewage and waste management, ecological carrying-capacity assessments and independent environmental audits.
Zahid Parwaz Choudhary, Convenor FRC-J&K, said traditional communities should not be treated as “encroachers first and citizens later”, while Peer Ghulam Mohidin, Co-Founder J&K RTI Movement, stressed that generations-old communities cannot be reduced to “a file number or an encroachment case.”
Adv. Naveed Bukhtiyar, Coordinator J&K RTI Movement, demanded transparent procedures, time-bound decisions, written reasons and accountability of officials. Dr Javaid Un Nabi, Secretary CSJD, called for enforceable rights and duties for both residents and authorities.
The Wular Fisherfolks Union, represented by Naseer Dar and Gh Hassan Bhat, further demanded a clear separation between conservation and tourism functions, asserting that “Wular needs protection before promotion.”
The groups also urged Nizamudin Bhat, MLA Bandipora; MLA Sopore Irshad Kar; MLA Sonawari Hilal Lone; and Adv. Irfan Hafeez Lone to support the rights of communities associated with Wular and Hygam.
They called for a broad consultation involving traditional dwellers, fisherfolk, pastoral communities, scientists, hydrologists, planners, lawyers, civil society and government authorities before the proposed legislation is finalised.
The statement was jointly issued by Dr Shaikh Ghulam Rasool, Zahid Parwaz Choudhary, Shameem Ahmed Shah, Dr Javaid Un Nabi, Peer Ghulam Mohidin, Adv. Naveed Bukhtiyar, Altaf Poswal, Naseer Dar, Gh Hassan Bhat and Farooq Dar.
