Inderpuri residents live with wastewater pond up close

Manmeet Singh Gill

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, July 15

The Inderpuri locality houses around 1,500 homes. That’s too many lives resting in the lap of danger for an old sewerage disposal site here is a also living place for vectors. With wastewater gathering and no outflow in place, it is hell unleashed upon the dwellers.

The residents state that years ago new sewerage lines were laid after which the problem reared it’s ugly head. An area resident told that the sewerage water from the disposal site earlier went to Bhalla wala Khoo area. “But now it remains at the place and the residents are forced to live with the stench,” he adds.

The residents want the all residences connected with the main sewerage lines so that no wastewater is thrown in the open. They state that though they live in a city which the government is developing into a smart one, their area is in a pitiable condition.

“It seems that government is spending huge amounts in already developed posh colonies and has forgotten about us,” says resident Satnam Singh, adding, “Instead of spending money on beautification projects, the government should first provide basic needs to people.”

Cases of people falling ill here are too frequent. “We believe that it is because of the dirty water pond in the middle of the area. After all, how can one be healthy in such a smelly and unhygienic surroundings?,” reasons Pammi, another resident. She is afraid of letting her kids out in such conditions.

Vikas, a teenager, has to think twice before inviting friends to his house. He says: “We feel embarrassed whenever a relative or a friend comes to our place and sees us living like this. Recently, health teams visited the place to quarantine a person and they were astonished.” He said that government should do something to solve the problem.

Arjun, a dweller of the locality, as if channeling his peers’ wish, says, “If people could afford, they would have sold their houses and started living somewhere else.” But only a fool would buy a house here. “We are stuck here and there seems no solution,” he laments.