AbstractHousehold waste is an environmental and public health problem, especially for the large cities in any country. People around the world are aware of the impact of improper waste disposal practices, but the negative attitude of implementation gives rise to chaotic situations. The aim of the present study is to know the awareness, attitude and practice of students towards household management in Kashmir valley. A well designed and validated questionnaire based on the literature available on the topic was used to collect the information from a sample of 400 students selected randomly from different Universities of Kashmir valley. The data collected was analyzed using appropriate statistical tools with the help of statistical software SPSS version 20. The results obtained from this study reveal that both students male as well as female are aware about household waste management. It is observed that shortage of storage bins, inefficient collection and large stray dog population has severely damaged the environmental condition of the valley. Further, acute absence of waste segregation at the source all types of materials are being disposed along with municipal solid waste which make waste handling very risky especially dumping and disposal points. The lack of governance, unplanned urban settlement and encroachments, inadequate infrastructures for waste collection, transportation and management are the major constrains in designing a suitable waste management plan for the valley. It is concluded that there is an urgent need of giving mass awareness of solid waste and e-waste disposal practices.
Keywords: Environment; Waste Management; Awareness; Practice; E-Waste; Kashmir.