Srinagar, Feb. 22 -- Kashmir's Karewas are massive plateaus-dry yet highly fertile. Over the last two to three decades, these Karewas have been plundered for clay excavation, a trend that has significantly increased over the last 5 to 6 years due to rising demand for clay in highway construction. The clay from Karewas in Budgam , Pulwama, Anantnag especially Bijbehera and Pattan area in Baramulla has also been used to fill low-lying areas and wetlands, a major contributing factor to the devastating floods in Kashmir, especially in Srinagar in 2014.

Thousands of hectares of Karewa land in Pulwama, particularly in the Parigam to Newa villages and the Chadoora area, including Kuzwera, Kultreh, Nagam, and Hayathpora villages, have been plund...