List Srinagar abattoir construction progress, High Court tells admn

Our Correspondent

Jammu, April 26

A Division Bench of the High Court of J&K and Ladakh (Jammu Bench), comprising Chief Justice N Kotiswar Singh and Justice Rahul Bharti, while hearing a PIL filed by an NGO through its chairperson Devinder Kaur Madaan seeking modern slaughter houses in J&K and Ladakh, has directed the administration, particularly Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC), to sort it out and apprise the court about the construction of abattoir at Allochi Bagh in the city.

The Division Bench was informed by senior additional advocate general SS Nanda, appearing for the SMC, that there is no work going on apparently because of the merger of the J&K Projects Construction Corporation (JKPCC) Ltd with PWD.

When this PIL came up for hearing, advocate Supriya Chouhan and Devinder Kaur Madaan, chairperson of SAVE, (Save Animals, Value Environment) informed the Division Bench that it was unfortunate that the construction of abattoir at Allochi Bagh, Srinagar, had been stopped by the project executing agency, which is JKPCC, and since the project is being monitored by this court and the SMC should have taken the matter seriously and before stopping the work, “the Division Bench should have been taken into confidence,” they said.

Chief Justice N Kotiswar Singh, while expressing displeasure over the stoppage of work, observed and directed, “Be that as it may, we see no reason as to why merger of the JKPCC with the PWD should come in the way of the construction of abattoir identified at Allochi Bagh, Srinagar.”

Advocate Supriya Chouhan further submitted that Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) has filed its latest status report wherein it has claimed that work progresses in respect of both the slaughter houses at Gujjar Nagar and Dogra Hall is satisfactory.

Deputy Solicitor General of India Vishal Sharma appearing for the UT of Ladakh submitted that the work of constructing abattoirs in Leh and Kargil is going on. The Division Bench further directed the registry to list this PIL again on July 8, 2024.

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