Open nullah stinks, poses health hazard

Satinder pal Singh

Zirakpur, February 20

While one struggles to hold one’s breath for as long as possible, residents of Green City here literally breathe easy, unmindful of an overbearing stench. Perhaps they have got used to it as they live there.

The open nullah passing through Green City has become a health hazard and the residents of the locality are forced to live in insanitary conditions.

Area residents rue that the entire stretch of the nullah is clogged with solid waste, garbage and discarded plastic for quite some time and no steps have been taken to de-silt and clean the drain. People living along and others passing through the area have to bear the stench emanating from stagnant water and waste material.

People appear to be blissfully ignorant of the outcome of their short-cut method of dumping domestic garbage into the nullah. Waste from the nearby meat market adjacent to Panchkula being dumped into the nullah adds to the woes.

Residents are irked at the laxity of the civic body in not covering the open drain adjacent to their locality. The nullah poses risk of outbreak of major diseases. Residents have demanded that the authorities concerned should look into the matter at the earliest.

The stench emanating from the uncovered nullah during rain is unbearable, alleged Deepak Sharma. Living conditions are pathetic here and the MC authorities were least bothered to covering it.

He alleged that the matter was brought to the notice of higher officials several times in the past, but to no avail. He said the Municipal Council authorities should take up the issue on a priority basis.

Area Councillor Dharmendra Kumar Gautam said the meat plant adjacent to the nullah aggravates the problem as animal waste was dumped into it. He would table the issue of constructing a wall along the nullah to provide some relief from the stench in the next General House meeting.

Officials of the Zirakpur Municipal Council said it comes under the Drainage Department.