Scarred by mining

Natural springs of Kashmir drying up due to illegal riverbed mining

- RAJA MUZAFFAR BHAT

ON OCTOBER 31, the executive engineer of the Jal Shakti Department in Jammu and Kashmir's Budgam district issued an alarm about a "drastic decrease" in drinking water availability. In a letter to the district mineral officer, Shakeel-ulRehman identified rampant illegal riverbed mining on the Sukh Nag stream as the primary cause.

Despite no mining leases ever being granted due to the stream's ecological importance-it supports a thriving trout population and serves as a water source for numerous villages-illegal mining has led to its drying up.

A similar crisis has unfolded in the district's Dawlatpora village, where a 30-crore modern water treatment plant built between 2010 and 2022 is now almost defunct.

While the infrastructure exists, the water source-Arbal Nag, an ancient spring-has nearly dried up over the past two to three years.

"Arbal Nag has been the identity of our village for centuries—a true daulat (treasure) for us," says Abdul Gani Rather, a former sarpanch of the village. "For the past 40 years, the spring also supplied water to our village through pipelines.

However, the spring's source, the Doodh Ganga river, located 300 m away, has been devastated by deep riverbed mining. This has destroyed the seepage that fed Arbal Nag," he says.

Now, water is lifted directly from the Doodh Ganga at Nowhar village, and channelled through pipelines to the plant in Dawlatpora.

Residents claim this water is unsafe for consumption. "Untreated water reaches the plant via a pipeline and is then directly sent to homes. This has serious health implications for the residents," says Raja Amir Khan, an environmental activist from Budgam. "The last three years have seen unchecked mining, which has halted the spring's flow forever," he adds.