No respite from sewer water woes

Month after month and year after year, the residents of Doraha have been exposed to sewer water and the resultant deplorable conditions. If one has to go by the pleas being made by the dwellers, it seems the Municipal Committee of Doraha has literally given up the very idea of evacuating the accumulated water from these wards.

“The sewer water was very well there when people were falling ill with dengue fever. Similar conditions prevailed in the monsoon season when this foul smelling water wreaked havoc. It was still the same in winters and we are sure it shall continue to be the same in the approaching summer season as well. We have accepted it to be our ill fate that we are forced to reside in a locality where there is everything but for clean air and hygienic surroundings,” rued Barjinder Jandu, who resides in Ward No.14 of the town.

“The sanitary employees are not bothered about its early evacuation for days together. Many times have we approached the committee but they are not serious about solving our problem. The sewer pipes being narrow, get choked very soon but if the committee is not in a position to provide a permanent solution to our problems where should we go? We simply cannot stay in such tormenting conditions where it has become difficult to breathe even,” complains Rajiv Sood, a resident of Ward No.6, where sewer water accumulation is a common site.

The residents are forced to put up with filth, squalor, sewer and disease all around. “The sewer water not only floods the street but also enters the houses of the residents, thus making the situation all the more deplorable. The drainage system gets choked to such an extent that even a small downpour leaves the condition of streets and houses miserable. Even in normal conditions, the street turns into a pool of filthy garbage water. The street is already narrow and the constant water accumulation has only helped in multiplying the problems of the people,” the residents rued.

A resident of Ward No.5 Joginder Kirti complained, “This is not for the first time that we are encountering such a problem. It has been years together that the sewer water gets accumulated, stays in the same position for days, is evacuated by the sanitary employees one fine day but recollects once their back is turned.”

“Earlier we thought that the problem of sewer accumulation would be resolved once the treatment plants are set up in the town. At present there are three sewerage treatment plants in the town still the situation has failed to improve. The water is treated but since the treated water overflows due to non-utilisation, it returns and accumulates in the streets. This assembled water has not only made the life of the commuters and the residents miserable but has also poses to be a serious health hazard, exposing the residents to a vulnerable number of diseases,” adds Vaneet Ashat, a resident of Vishwakarma Road of Doraha.

SDM Payal Pardeep Bains said the council is very well aware of the problem. “To counter this, we laid a treated sewer water line last month from the plant to the canal which will be functional very soon. This line is going to end all sewer related woes of the residents. At present, too, the wards which get flooded by sewer, the municipal employees assure evacuation there and then,” the SDM asserted.