“The Cleanliness Manifesto from Nowpora Youth to Govt—We’ll Do Our Part, You Do Yours”
Suhail Khan
Nowpora, Jul 12: The Youth Welfare Committee (YWC) of Nowpora in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district conducted a massive cleanliness drive across the locality on Sunday, with volunteers emphasizing that environmental stewardship cannot be left to the government alone.
More than 50 youth volunteers participated in the drive, clearing garbage from drains, public pathways, and vacant plots that had become dumping grounds. The collected waste was later segregated and handed over to municipal sanitation workers for disposal.
“The government has its limitations. We cannot keep blaming authorities while we continue to litter our own surroundings. Every individual must own this responsibility for their own well-being,” said Imtiyaz Khanday, a senior functionary of the committee, speaking to The Web Story/The Varmul Post.
The drive assumes significance in the context of growing concerns over solid waste management in urban and semi-urban areas across Jammu and Kashmir. While the government has rolled out multiple schemes under the Swachh Bharat Mission, ground-level implementation often suffers from a lack of public cooperation and inadequate civic awareness.
Local residents hailed the initiative, with many stepping out to assist the volunteers. “This is what we need—people taking the lead instead of waiting for the municipality to act. If every locality does this, half our problems are solved,” said Ghulam Nabi, a shopkeeper in the area.
The Youth Welfare Committee has announced plans to conduct similar drives every Sunday and also launch an awareness campaign in local educational institutions to inculcate cleanliness habits among children from an early age.
“Cleanliness is not a one-day event. It is a continuous process. Our goal is to make Nowpora a model for other localities to follow,” said Lone Mehraj, a senior member of the group.
The drive ended with a pledge ceremony in which residents vowed to keep their neighbourhood clean and discourage open dumping of waste.
Notably, this is not the first such initiative in the Valley. Earlier this year, a similar community-led effort in South Kashmir’s Kulgam district led to the restoration of the polluted Sandran rivulet, demonstrating the power of collective action in environmental conservation.
