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Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89

International Conference on Solid Waste Management, 5IconSWM 2015

Tourism induced Challenges in Municipal Solid Waste Management

in Hill Towns: Case of Pahalgam
Subzar Bashir a,*, Subhrangsu Goswami b*
a
Urban Planner, Srinagar Development Authority, Srinagar, J&K, India
b Assistant Professor & Area Chair- Environmental Planning, Faculty of Planning, CEPT University, Ahmedabad, India.

Abstract

Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) is one of the crucial urban basic services which influence the public health
and environment of a town. While hill towns in India are already facing tremendous pressure due to lack of infrastructure,
unfavourable climatic condition, difficult terrain, and public apathy towards waste management, Tourism induced challenges
further aggravate the issue. Although in case of hill towns, tourism has a profound impact on the economy of the town, it comes
with new challenges in terms of waste generation resulting into negative impacts on the sensitive hill environment. It is in this
context, an effort has been made in this paper to examine the current issues and challenges in MSWM practice in Pahalgam, a
small hill town located in the state of J&K, commonly known as “Mini Switzerland”, with special reference to impact of tourism
on overall MSWM of the town. The methodology adopted includes review of case of SWM in other hill towns in India, and the
legal and policy aspects at the national level. Primary survey of households and hotels was conducted by using stratified random
sampling technique. Data was collected through structured questionnaire containing key information related to the issues and
challenges in MSWM with special focus on tourism. Interview of city officials was conducted to capture institutional perspective.

The study revealed that, in Pahalgam, tourism sector is the major generator of solid waste, Religious-touristic activities
during the peak season. The study also finds crucial issues related to lack of capacity of the local body and the issues related to
lack availability of plain land, improper location of waste collection infrastructure due to undulated terrain and inadequate
collection capacity. The study also finds very strong correlation between unscientific disposal of MSW and degrading surface
water quality and increasing occurrence of water borne diseases in the downstream during the peak tourist season.
© 2016
© 2016Published
The Authors. Published
by Elsevier by Elsevier
B.V. This is an openB.V.
access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
Peer-review under responsibility ofthe organizing committee of 5IconSWM 2015.
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of 5IconSWM 2015
Keywords: Hill Towns in India, Tourism, Solid Waste Management, Urban Environment;

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address:subzarbashir20@gmail.com

1878-0296 © 2016 Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of 5IconSWM 2015
doi:10.1016/j.proenv.2016.07.048
78 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89

1. Introduction

Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) is one of the crucial urban basic services which influence the
public health and environment of a town. As per Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules of
2000 and the notified draft solid waste management rules of 2015 (including construction and demolition waste),
urban local bodies are the responsible authorities for the management and handling of municipal solid waste.
However the services offered by most of the urban local bodies in the country are far below the satisfactory level.

While hill towns in India are already facing tremendous pressure due to lack of infrastructure, unfavourable
climatic condition, difficult terrain, budget deficit, and public apathy towards waste management, Tourism induced
challenges further aggravate the issue (Bashir, 2015). Although in case of hill towns, tourism has a profound impact
on the economy of the town; it comes with new challenges in terms of waste generation resulting into negative
impacts on the sensitive hill environment. Primary objective of the paper is therefore to examine the current issues
and challenges in MSWM practice in Pahalgam, with special reference to the pressure created due to tourism in the
town.

2. Study Area and the Context

Pahalgam is located in the south Kashmir’s Anantnag district at an average altitude of 2019 meters above sea
level. It has a population of 9,264 persons spread over municipal area of 5 Sq. Km. The town has a municipal
committee. Pahalgam is a world famous hill station and is known as mini Switzerland of India. The town enjoys a
sub Mediterranean type of climate with harsh winters and moderate summers. The Lidder is the main natural
drainage flowing through the town with perennial flow and rich aquatic species. The land use within the Municipal
limits is dominated by the residential use followed by the tourist accommodation facilities like hotels and guest
houses.

Map 1. Location of Pahalgam

Tourism is the main function of the town and receives more than 70per cent of the total tourist flow in the
valley. Pahalgam also serves as a base camp for Yatra which is a Hindu religious occasion performed every year in
the month of July and August. It is evident from different available literature that, the substantial tourist flow
including Amarnath yatris, generates lot of solid waste at the base camp site which not only destroys the scenic
beauty of the town but also eventually dumped in the River Lidder which is used as source of drinking water in the
downstream areas (Bashir, 2015). While the entire country is discussing about National Urban Sanitation Policy
 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89 79

(NUSP), City Sanitation plans (CSP), and Service Level Benchmarks (SLB), small hill towns like Pahalgam, with
unprecedented tourist flow is facing tough challenges in managing its municipal solid waste.

3. Methodology

Methodology of the study was developed in line with the objective of the study. Since the primary objective of
the paper is to examine the current issues and challenges in MSWM practice in Pahalgam, with special reference to
the pressure created due to tourism in the town, both primary and secondary data was required. Data pertaining to
tourism and solid waste management have been obtained through two sources i.e. Secondary source and primary
survey. The secondary data has been collected from the sanitation wing of Municipal Committee Pahalgam (MCP).
A primary survey of 60 households has been carried out to understand the current situation of solid waste
management in Pahalgam. It is important to note here that households were divided into two major categories before
survey. One category is the households which do not provide any accommodation facility to tourists, whereas the
other category is the households which provide accommodation facility to tourists during peak tourist seasons. The
category one households have also been referred to as general households in the discussion below. Primary survey
has also been carried out at Hotels of different classes and at Shops in the market. Focused group discussion with
tourists and rag pickers were also conducted. National policies and legal aspects related to Municipal solid waste
management were examined to understand the relevance of the same in the context of hill towns.

4. Status of Tourism in Pahalgam

4.1 Tourist Flow

Tourism is the main function of Pahalgam town. Tourists from every corner of the world visit Pahalgam for
leisure and religious purposes (Yatra). Out of the total tourist flow to the Kashmir valley, more than 70per cent
tourists visit Pahalgam. Foreign tourists comprise less than 2per cent of the total flow. There is also a huge influx of
local tourists from the valley to the Town. Annual tourist flow to the town is given in Figure 1A below. The tourist
flow considerably increases in the months of June, July and August which is a peak tourist season and Hindu
Religious Yatra period.

1400000

1200000

1000000

800000

600000

400000

200000

0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Source: Department of Tourism, Pahalgam, 2015

Fig. 1. Annual Tourist Flow to Pahalgam (2000-2014)

80 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89

450000

400000

Number of Tourists 350000

300000

250000

200000

150000

100000

50000

ġ
ŔŰŶųŤŦĻġŅŦűŢųŵŮŦůŵġŰŧġŕŰŶųŪŴŮĭġőŢũŢŭŨŢŮĭġijıIJĶġ
ġ
ŇŪŨįġijįġŎŰůŵũġŸŪŴŦġŕŰŶųŪŴŵġŇŭŰŸġŵŰġőŢũŢŭŨŢŮġŪůġijıIJĵ
ġ
Amarnath Yatra is a religious occasion performed every year in the month of July and August by Hindu
pilgrims at Amarnath Gufa to visit the naturally formed holy Shiv Lingam. There are two routes to Amarnath Gufa,
one is from Pahalgam and another is through Sonamarg. The yatris going through Pahalgam route start their journey
from Nunwan base camp. The pilgrims from every corner of India visit the place to perform the religious occasion.
The religious occasion is being performed since centuries for seven to ten days, however since last decade it has
been extended to two months. As can be seen from the graph below, there has been considerable fluctuation in
percentage share of Yatri and other tourists during last decade, however Yatris always consisted a considerable size
of tourists flow to Pahalgam.

100%
90%
26%
35% 37% 33%
80% 40%
51% 53%
70% 65% 61%
74% 73% 70%
60%
50%
40%
74%
65% 63% 67%
30% 60%
49% 47%
20% 35% 39%
26% 27% 30%
10%
0%
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

OtherTourists Yatries

Source: Department of Tourism, Pahalgam, 2015

Fig. 3. Ratio of Yatri and Other Tourists (2000 -2011)
 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89 81

4.2 Accommodation Capacity

Tourist accommodation sector comprises of four categories of hotels in Pahalgam. The bed capacity of different
category of hotels is given in the table below. Out of the total tourist accommodation capacity of the Town, Guest
Houses constitute major share (65 per cent) followed by B & C class hotels (23 per cent each), and A Class hotels (7
per cent). It should be noted that apart from formal commercial tourist accommodation facilities, there are local
residents who provide accommodation to tourists.

As can be seen in the table above, Pahalgam has a formal capacity of accommodating about 7020 tourists per
day. However it is evident that during peak tourist season tourists visiting Pahalgam varies from thousands to lakhs
per day. During peak season of 2014, on an average more than 10,000 tourists have visited Pahalgam daily. As can
be seen from the figure below, during the month of July 2014, as high as about 14000 tourists visited Pahalgam. It is
therefore evident that during the Yatra period there is tremendous scarcity of formal accommodation.

Table 1. Tourist Accommodation Facilities in Pahalgam

Hotel category Number of establishments Number of Rooms Number of Beds

A-Class 11 630 1260
B-Class 16 420 840
C-Class 53 1220 2440
Guest House 150 1240 2480
Total 230 3510 7020
Source: Department of Tourism, Pahalgam, 2015

16000
14000
12000
10000
8000
6000
4000
2000
0

Average Tourist flow per day Average accomodation Capacity per Day

Source: Department of Tourism, Pahalgam (2014) & University of Kashmir (2011)

Fig. 4. Daily Tourist flow Vs Carrying Capacity

5. Status of Solid Waste Management in Pahalgam

5.1 Generation of Solid Waste

As per municipal authority, about 18.72 tons of solid waste is generated per day from multiple sources in
Pahalgam town. As the major function of the town is Tourism and Religious activities (Yatra), tourist
accommodation sector is the major generator of solid waste. Waste generation from different sectors is shown in the
figure below.
82 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89

As can be seen from the figure, maximum amount of waste is generated from hotels and restaurants (74 per
cent), followed by local households (18 per cent) and Markets (5 per cent). Remaining waste is coming from
commercial establishments, street sweeping and other sources.

0.5percent 0.5percent
2%

5% Hotel & Restaurants

Households
18%
Market

Street sweeping

Commercial

74% Others

Source: Municipal Committee Pahalgam, 2015

Fig. 5. Sources of Solid Waste at Pahalgam

5.1.1 Waste Generation by Tourist Accommodation Sector

The per Capita generation of solid waste depends upon the economic status and living standard of people
staying in different category of hotels. It is evident from the primary survey that per capita per day generation is the
highest in A-class hotels, followed by B, C Class hotels and guest houses. However the number of beds and
occupancy rate is different in different category of hotels, and therefore total waste generation from these hotels
shows different trend.

The maximum generation of solid waste is in Class A hotels followed by Class C hotels. The Class B hotels and
Guest houses generate lesser quantities of waste as compared to A and C category hotels in Pahalgam. It is
interesting to note that Guest Houses constitute 65per cent of the total accommodation but constitute only 18per cent
of the total solid waste from accommodation sector, whereas A- Class Hotels constitute only 7per cent of the total
accommodation but contribute more than 35per cent of the total waste.

5.1.2 Waste Generation by Amarnath Yatris

Field survey of this study was conducted during the month of January and February. Therefore it was not
possible to collect data about Amarnath Yatris. Therefore data about Yatries has been taken from EIA study on
Pahalgam done by University of Kashmir (Srinagar) in the year 2011. According to the report, at the base camp on
an average each Yatri generates about 2 kg of solid waste per day. As per daily Yatra flow during the year 2011,
Yatra activity alone generated about 2.84 Tons of solid waste per day.
 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89 83

Table 2. Waste Generation in Accommodation sector during peak season

Average Daily
Number Per capita Average Daily
Number Number of Bed occupancy rate in
Category of daily waste waste Generation
of Units Beds percentage
Rooms (KG) (Kg)
(June- August)
A-Class 11 630 1260 2.9 100 3704
B-Class 16 420 840 1.9 90 1436
C-Class 53 1220 2440 1.7 84 3483
Guest House 150 1240 2480 0.9 87 1915
Total 230 3510 7020 10538 kg
Source: Department of Tourism, Pahalgam, 2015, and sample survey, 2015

Table 3. Waste Generation by Households

Number Total Per capita per Total waste generated

Type of Household
of Households Population day waste (in kg) daily (tons)
Households With accommodation facility 280 2871 0.506 1.45
General Households 686 6392 0.263 1.68

Total 966 9264 3.13

Source: Census of India, 2011 and Sample survey, 2015

5.1.3 Waste Generation by Households

There are total 966 households in the town, out of which 29 per cent households provide accommodation to the
tourists and also serve them food in the peak tourist season. It was observed during the primary survey that per
capita waste generation from such households is almost double compare to per capita generation from general
households which does not provide any accommodation facility to tourists. Comparative estimation of waste
generation from these two types of households is given in the table above.

5.1.4 Waste Generation by Shops

Within the Pahalgam municipal limits there are total 309 shops registered by the municipal authorities. These
shops are of different types namely vegetable shops, general kiryana, dry fruit, handicrafts, meat shops, tea stalls and
bakers etc. On an average, 7.8 kg of waste is generated by each shop. During the tourist season 2.41 tonnes of solid
waste are generated daily from the shops.

5.1.5 Waste Generation through Street Sweeping

In Pahalgam apart from local population, floating population and tourists generate considerable amount of
wastes on the streets. In the year 2014 on an average, 10,877 tourists visited daily during peak tourist season (June-
august). An estimation of wastes generated due to street sweeping is given in the table below. It can be observed that
during peak season floating population alone contributes about 1.1 tons of street waste.

5.2 Composition of MSW at Pahalgam

It is evident from the figure below that the waste contains significant amount of compostable and recyclable
waste components. The waste from the accommodation sector and Yatra waste is having a good potential of
composting because it contains 65per cent and 66per cent of compostable waste respectively. Commercial waste
also contains considerable share of compostable waste. The waste collected from Households contains
comparatively lesser share of compostable waste because many households use organic waste in organic farming
and for feeding cattle.
84 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89

Table 4. Waste Generation through Street Sweeping

Per capita waste Total waste

Waste source Total population
generation per day on streets (in Kg)* ( in Tons per day)
Local Population 9264 0.05 0.46
Floating Population 10,877 0.1 1.08
Total 20141 1.54
Source: Estimated based on data from Census of India, 2011 and Department of Tourism, Pahalgam, 2015
*Note: Based on CPHEEO guidelines

100% 2% 2%
14% 16% 6%
17%
80%
21% 18% 34%

60% 43%

40%
65% 66%
58%
20% 38%

0%
Household Hotel waste Yatra waste Commercial

Compostable Recyclable Combustible Miscellaneous

Source: University of Kashmir (2011)

Fig. 6. Composition of Collected Waste from Different Sources

5.3 Segregation of Waste at Source

Rag pickers are the only segregators of municipal solid waste other than households. Rag pickers only work in the
peak tourist seasons and Yatra season when the solid waste generation is very high and they earn more by selling
recyclable wastes. The primary survey data shows that 93 per cent of households which does not provide
accommodation to tourists do segregate their waste. The recyclables are segregated mainly to earn money by selling
it. The biodegradable waste or wet waste is used as manure in the agricultural fields and to feed the cattle. However
only 63 per cent households, which provide accommodation to the tourists in the peak season, segregates their
waste.

5.4 Collection of Waste

The overall collection system for solid waste in the town is not very promising. Door to door collection system
is observed in very few areas. Most of the collection happens from primary and secondary bins. From the primary
survey data it is evident that about 33 percent households with tourist accommodation facility enjoy the door to door
collection facility. However in case of households which does not provide accommodation facility to tourists, only
about 3 percent households are covered under door to door collection facility. Open dumping is also observed to be
a common practice.
 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89 85

100%
7%

27%
80%

60%
60%

40% 70%

20%
33%

0% 3%
GeneralHouseholds HouseholdswithTouristaccomodationfacility

Door to Door Community bin Open Disposal

Source: Sample Survey, 2015

Fig. 7. Collection of Waste

As far as frequency of waste collection is concerned, a clear disparity is observed. While about 56 percent
households which provide accommodation to tourists reported daily collection of waste, only 10 percent of general
households reported daily collection of waste.

100%
7%
23%
80%
37%

60%
44%

40%

56%
20% 23%

10%
0%
General Households Households with Tourist accomodation facility

Daily Once in 3 days Weekly No collection

Source: Sample Survey, 2015

Fig. 8. Frequency of Waste Collection

86 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89

In case of hotels, door to door collection facility is provided only to the hotels located along main roads. The
hotels which are located far from the main roads mostly dispose their waste into the community bins.

As per municipal authority reports, 18.72 tons of waste are collected daily in peak tourist season, against an
estimated 26.97 tons of generation. Therefore, during peak tourist season about 8.25 tons of solid waste remains
uncollected daily.

Access to Secondary Storage of Waste:

In absence of door to door collection, access to secondary storage of waste becomes very important. MCP has
provided 19 community bins (100 kg to 500 kg capacity) and 70 small bins with 30 Kg capacity each within the
municipal area. It is evident from the primary survey data that dustbins are very less in number and are not
strategically located. The access to community bin for waste disposal is very bad in case of general households
because 73per cent of the households don’t have access to the community bin. In case of households with
accommodation facilities, almost all households are having access to the community bin. In terms of distance too,
the households with accommodation facility have comparatively better access to the community bins. About 60 per
cent of such households have access to bins within 10-20 meters distance, whereas only 17 per cent of general
households have such good access.

The commercial and other market places are also having poor access to the community bins. The hotels along
road side are provided with door to door collection facilities; however other hotels dispose their waste in the
community bins.

5.5 Street Sweeping

As far as frequency of street sweeping is concerned, wide variation in frequency of sweeping has been observed
from area to area. While about 60 per cent households with accommodation facility reported daily street sweeping
near their house, only about 13 per cent of general households enjoy this facility. The worst part is that about 64 per
cent general households reported that there is no street sweeping done by the authority near their houses.

100%

80% 40%

64%
60%

40%
10% 60%
20% 13%

13%
0%
General Households Households with Tourist accomodation facility

Daily Once in 3 days Weekly No Sweeping

Source: Sample Survey, 2015

Fig. 9. Frequency of Street Sweeping

 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89 87

5.6 Transportation, Treatment & Disposal

During the field visit it was observed that, MCP is not having adequate waste transportation vehicles. There are
only 5 vehicles (1 tipper, 03 tractors and 1 pickup van) for the transportation of waste from 13 municipal wards.
More over during peak tourist season, services for solid waste management are provided beyond municipal limits.
The waste is manually loaded by the municipal sweepers and openly transported to the dumping ground.
Unfortunately MCP has not yet been able to establish any kind of treatment or processing plant for the waste. As a
result MCP dumps the entire collected waste in an open forest land which is in close proximity with the main
highway of the town and also near the fresh water stream flowing from the Tulian Lake.

5.7 Sanitation Charges

Tourism sector contributes more than 74 percent of the total municipal solid waste in Pahalgam. However
sanitation charges that is being collected from this sector seems to be too low, compare to households. As can be
seen from the table below, a general household pays Rs. 100 per annum, while a ‘Category A’ hotel too pays Rs.
100 per room per annum. Other category of hotels pays as low as Rs. 30 to 50 per room per annum. On the other
hand MCP is not able to collect sanitation charges from about 40 per cent of the households because either they are
provided partial services or no services at all.
Table 5. Sanitation Charges levied by MCP
Sanitation Charges
Category
( in Rs. per Annum)
Class A Hotels Rs 100/ Room
Class B Hotels Rs 50/ Room
Class C Hotels Rs 30-50/ Room
Guest Houses Rs 30-50/ Room
Vegetable shop Rs 100
General Kiryana shop Rs 300
Dry fruit shop Rs 150
Shawl & Hosiery shop Rs 250
Meat shop Rs 500
General Households Rs 100
Households with accommodation facility for tourists Rs 500
Source: Municipal Committee Pahalgam, 2015

6. Environmental Impacts

It is evident from the figure below, that water borne diseases like Diarrhea, Gastroenteritis, Dysentery, and
Typhoid are commonly occurring diseases in the downstream areas of River Lidder during the peak tourist and
Yatra season. The main reason behind it is the water pollution due to direct dumping of solid waste in the river
during Yatra season (Bashir, 2015). Unfortunately, in the downstream areas, people are using the river water for
drinking purpose without any treatment, as they consider it pure.

The openly dumped untreated waste destroys the precious vegetation cover and pine trees. During the primary
survey, People from Ganshibal reported the issue of death of cattle due to eating of openly dumped plastic waste.
The dogs and other animals like horses are attracted by the open dump sites and overflowing dustbins, which is a
threat to the children and old aged people.
88 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89

700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0

Mattan Sallar Pahalgam

Source: PHC (Mattan, Sallar, &Pahalgam), 2013

Fig. 10. Number of patients reported with water borne diseases in downstream of Pahalgam

Photograph 1. Lidder River Photograph 2. Roadside Open Dumping

Photograph 3: Dumping on the River Bank Photograph 4: Overflowing Community Bin

 Subzar Bashir and Subhrangsu Goswami / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 77 – 89 89

7. Summing up

Inappropriate and inefficient management of municipal solid waste is one of the root causes of degradation of
the hill town environment in India. In absence of adequate capacity of the local bodies, seasonal tourism further
aggravates the situation. At national level, various policies and programs have been formulated from time to time for
improving sanitation services in urban India. But most of such policies and programs remained silent about the
special character of the hill cities which demands special attention to the problem of waste management.

While Pahalgam is already experiencing low capacity and resource base in providing adequate solid waste
management services to the citizens, tourism creates extra pressure on the system by contributing as high as 75
percent of the waste during peak tourist season. It is observed that the households which provide accommodation to
tourists generate considerably higher amount of waste.

It is evident from the study that such households receive better services too from the MCP, in terms of access to
secondary waste bins and collection of waste. Due to the undulating terrain waste collection from isolated
households residing on slopes is difficult.

MCP does not have adequate waste collection and transportation vehicles and on top of it, during peak tourist
season MCP is forced to provide solid waste management services beyond municipal limits. Unfortunately MCP has
not yet been able to establish any kind of treatment or processing plant primarily due to lack of finance and
unavailability of suitable plain land. Due to high tourist potential, land prices are very high and hence the suitable
land for waste management plants and landfill sites becomes difficult for ULB to acquire. As far as financial
resources are concerned, MCP has so far demonstrated poor collection of sanitation charges. Interestingly recently
launched Swatch Bharat Mission (2014) talks about the unification of small cities for financial viability but it seems
to be difficult in case of hill towns because these are isolated from flat towns and are located in difficult terrain. As
of today MCP dumps the entire collected waste in an open forest land near the fresh water stream flowing from the
Tulian Lake. Considerable amount of waste is also dumped in the Lidder River during peak tourist season, which
results into water borne diseases among the people staying in downstream of the river.

To sum up, Pahalgam is unable to cope up with the negative impact of tourism in terms of management of solid
waste in the town due to certain valid reasons. And it is important to note that hill towns like Pahalgam deserves
special attention for better management of waste to create an attractive and sustainable tourist destination.

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