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Jhala, a lesser known border hamlet situated near the banks of Bhagirathi river, few kilometers before disaster hit Dharali on the Gangotri road in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand state is doing the rounds these days with students taking active part in the cleanliness campaign “Dhanyawad Prakriti” or “Thank You Nature” and making the surroundings clean. The campaign was the brain child of the Youth Welfare Committee (Yuvak Mangal Dal) with a motive to thank Mother Nature by devoting two hours every day for cleanliness of the surroundings. This effort of youth was lauded by the honourable Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi through the 114th episode of his broadcast programme Mann Ki Baat on 29 September 2024. It’s an example that shows how encouragement can do wonders in terms of spreading awareness especially amongst the youngsters. I always advocate for involving school children in any campaign to transform it into a purposeful activity.
Quintessential Jhala village lies under the purview of Bhatwari Tehsil and Block headquarters and lies 40 km ahead of it. Incidentally Bhatwari is the place where I was born and brought up. The priest of Jhala village who was resident of Bhatwari once shared an anecdote that an outsider travelling to Gangotri stayed in Jhala and commented about untidy and unkempt appearance of villagers who used to abstain from bathing for days. The priest being a renowned and sensible personality of the locality replied that the extreme climatic conditions were responsible for their untidiness then, but with their big and clean hearts they welcomed guests enthusiastically and such was the trust on others that nobody locked doors in the village. These people with such clean hearts are not only doing yeoman’s service to the society by up keeping the vicinity and making surroundings clean, they have become the ambassador for the cause for others to follow suit also. With this beginning, the theme of Swachh Bharat Mission ‘Sanskar aur Swabhav’ (Value and Nature) will surely be inculcated amongst the masses to transform into habit of sanitation.
The cleanest village of India Mawlynnog that lies in Meghalaya is worth mentioning here that they have transformed it into a self-sustained village and hot tourist spot. An entry fee is levied for visiting the village and the fund thus generated is spent in uplifting the living condition of residents, bolstering the basic amenities in the village and for employment generation. The waste is collected in the dustbins made of bamboo, directed to a pit and then used as manure. It is mandatory for every villager to take part in cleanliness of the village as community service. Smoking and use of polythene is banned and rainwater harvesting is encouraged. With such measures and many more, Jhala has the potential to become self-sustained village of Uttarakhand in near future.
Another place needing special mention is Thalisain town that became seventh Nagar Panchayat of district Pauri. It is both a tehsil and a development block and is located on the right bank of Eastern Nayaar River. Veera Devi was elected as its first Chairperson and Deepak Pratap has been appointed as Executive Officer. On October 2, 2025 the proposed by-laws in respect of Solid Waste Management (SWM) were published in the newspaper inviting objections and suggestions within 30 days from the date of publication from the affected persons/shop owners / establishments/ offices. The plan is indeed in line with the Solid Waste Management Manual 2016 prepared by the Government of India. There are 10 chapters in the by-laws. Chapter one titled ‘General’ defines various terminologies related to SWM and chapter 2 titled ‘Segregation and Storage of Soild Waste at Source’ that lays emphasis of segregation and storage of nonbiodegrable, biodegradable and hazardous waste with respective colours of dustbins for collection of waste are blue, green and black at the source. Clear cut by-laws for their disposal have also been proposed. Chapter three titled ‘Soild Waste Collection’ proposes modalities of door to door collection of waste from different establishments. Chapter four titled ‘Secondary Storage of Solid Waste’ sets guideline for civic body to store the waste at the designated places. Chapter 5 titled ‘Transport of Solid Waste’ delineates the mode and methods of transport of solid waste. Chapter six sets guidelines for processing and chapter seven about the disposal of solid waste. Chapter 8 describes the penalties levied on violation of bylaws, chapter nine fixes the responsibilities of the stake holders and chapter 10 clarifies the miscellaneous situations. If the proposed bylaws are approved and implemented religiously and meticulously, I am sanguine that Thalisain is going to set standards for other civic bodies to follow suit and it will surely revolutionize the much needed sanitation state which is currently certainly not satisfactory.
Pilgrimage to Jwalpa Devi Temple in Pauri left me aghast after seeing plastic and other non- biodegradable waste strewn around in the region and Nayaar River loaded with such filth too. No sanitation staff was present in the place and nobody seemed to be concerned for the cause. This is the condition elsewhere too. All most all shops selling offerings and other worship products use single use plastics which devotees and priests litter around after use. Need is to develop a practice of offering only natural products that are easily recycled into valuable goods or degraded easily. In the picturesque hill station Khirsu the same pattern observed everywhere and even the Ecological Park maintained by the Forest department had glass and plastic bottles scattered around. In fact I and my family carried out a sanitation drive in the Park by collecting the trash and throwing it into bins. On one hand we wish to make our state the tourism hub and on the other hand we have such a lackadaisical approach towards the sanitation.
Moreover the burgeoning tourists’ influx in Uttarakhand is very encouraging for the economic health of the state but it is adversely affecting its environmental health. Most of the tourists on pilgrimage or on vacation have a carefree outing and litter around at will giving bad site here and there. In the absence of robust recycle and treatment plan the scattered garbage adversely affects the ecosystem and pollutes land and water bodies and endangers the lives of cattle and other animals. Digital Deposit Refund System initiated in Kedarnath was found to be much successful in this regard and was helpful not only in terms of better sanitation but in terms of employment generation too. Uttarakhnad has also initiated a QR code-based project to prevent littering and streamlining collection of waste and reduction of garbage along the Char Dham Yatra route that includes Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri and two more places Hemkund Sahib and Valley of Flowers. Visitors scan a QR code on each plastic bottle and multi-layer plastic bag (of chips or biscuits) and pay a deposit over MRP which they can claim back when they return the trash.
Wide spread campaigns by the residents following Jhala model, framing and approval of bylaws and their strict implementation as per Thalisain model along with spread of awareness and strict punitive action will help improve the sanitation health of the state. Better sewage treatment system, recycling plants, strict ban on single use plastic and strong will for self- sustenance along with full support from official machinery will turn this state a heaven which Uttarakhandi people aspired for and achieved by paying a huge price. Prevalence of this awareness will be the real Silver Jubilee celebration for Uttarakhand natives.
Dr Prashant Thapliyal
Associate Professor
Army Cadet College
Indian Military Academy Dehradun
