Srinagar, Oct 16: The government has notified the J&K Circular Economy Policy, 2026, marking a decisive step towards resource recovery, green growth and ecological sustainability.
Recognising J&K’s diverse geography and settlement patterns, the policy provides for decentralised processing in remote areas, hub-and-spoke logistics across intermediate corridors, and advanced circular economy systems in major urban centres.
J&K’s waste streams span municipal solid waste, food and wet waste, tourism-related waste, horticulture and agricultural biomass, packaging waste, construction and demolition waste, e-waste, wastewater, as well as material loops linked to repair, refurbishment, wool and handicrafts.
To address these varied requirements, the policy introduces a three-tier framework: Circular, Circular  and Circular  .
The framework will enable waste management, recycling, resource recovery and wastewater reuse systems to be tailored to the scale and requirements of local bodies across J&K, including Jammu and Srinagar.
To address logistical and terrain-related constraints, the roadmap also provides for the development of regional clusters, enabling aggregation, efficient transportation and viable processing of different waste streams.
The policy will be supported through convergence with Central schemes, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) mechanisms and Public-Private Partnership models, creating a framework for sustainable urban and rural growth, improved resource efficiency and new green livelihood opportunities.