Keonjhar: The ever increasing air pollution has been menace for the residents of Keonjhar town, once known for its salubrious climate.
Despite expenditure in lakhs of rupees to beautify the town and check pollution, local residents here are constantly subject to dust and smoke. Residents ascribe all this to the awful garbage management and iron ore transportation.
Any given day, huge dumps of filth can be seen on the streets and every nook and corner. This apart, the civic body swamps the collected garbage at Judia and Ghutur, the entry points to the town.
There are some picnic spots near the town and this being a picnic season, hundreds of picnickers are coming to this district every day. To their utter dismay, they are welcomed with the stink and foul at the very start. “We had heard about the wholesome climate of Keonjhar district. Our conception went totally south at the very entry point,” say some picnickers.
As if dumping garbage was not enough, instead of burying the litters, they are being rampantly burnt, causing severe air pollution.
Lakhs of rupees were spent in procuring low quality dustbins. Keeping the quality aside, their haphazard placement across the town makes the matter worse. Some dustbins are just lying unused for their wrong selection of place, observed Prakash Sutradhar, a local resident.
The plying of iron ore carriers is another reason for the ludicrous air pollution. Despite restrictions, trucks carrying iron ore with no cover are plying throughout the town, consequently making the fine iron dust lead to hazards for lung infections. Former councilor Sudhir Nanda says, “Suspended iron particles, hazardous particles and smoke have given rise to various respiratory related diseases.”
Particularly commuting on NH-49 has become unsafe and severely unhealthy. The regional pollution control board office is also taking no steps in this regard. The ever increasing pollution level has made tourists opt out of Keonjhar town from their list of favourite spots, said Pradeep Mohanty, a Madhapur resident.
PNN