Three goats fall prey to toxic waste at Bhadrakali

Rajesh Sharma

Una, January 6

A farmer lost three goats while three other fell sick in the Bhadrakali panchayat of Amb sub-division after allegedly consuming some poisonous substance from a garbage dump today. 

Victim Sham Lal said he had taken the animals for grazing and they accidentally ventured into the village waste dumping area located near a rivulet. It is learnt that a cow, too, had recently died after grazing near the open waste dump. 

While open defecation and open dumping of waste is banned in the district under the Nirmal Gram Abhiyan, none of the 234 gram panchayats or urban local bodies has a functional solid or liquid waste management plan. In Bharakali too, villagers toss their domestic waste into a rivulet of the Swan river located in their village from the bridge. 

The Bhadrakali temple is located some distance away from the bridge and the area near the dumping ground is also inhabited by humans. Sham Lal said goats were his major source of livelihood, half of which had perished. 

Meanwhile, panchayat pradhan Sunita Kumari said waste bins had been put up at various places in the village, but people seldom use these. She said an awareness campaign regarding sanitation was being carried out from time to time in the panchayat, adding that a public notice board cautioning the people from throwing their waste in the open would be installed near the bridge and violators would be fined. 

The pradhan said the panchayat would request the district administration to compensate Sham Lal for the loss and a cleaning operation of the solid waste would be undertaken.