In order to curb pollution and make the environment plastic-free and eco-friendly, a ban on cooking in the open and usage of polythene is imposed on Patnitop hill resort in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir. A fine will be imposed on people violating the rule. Sher Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Patnitop Development Authority, has ordered this.
Singh exercised his power under section 133 Cr Pc to impose the ban. A ban on cooking, lighting of the fire, littering or throwing garbage or waste, use of plastic, polythene and other stuff in Patnitop and the areas surrounded by the hill resort. This is an attempt to reduce the use of fire, polythene and other hazardous plastic which is dangerous and harmful to the environment.
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As per reports, Singh said that it has been observed that tourists carry banned items like plastic, polythene and other plastic items and dump these in the open forest area posing environmental hazard, pollution as well as leading to chocked drains which creates a lot of nuisance and also damages the reputation of the resort.
To manage the situation, the concerned department of the PDA, forest and police departments will keep an eye on people and a fine will be imposed on people for not adhering to the rule, as per the order.
A lot of tourists can be seen hurriedly heading to Patnitop to escape the blazing heat. The tourist destination also witnessed factors contributing to major forest fires and causing damage to the forest ecosystem. A similar ban was imposed earlier in 2021.
