Post News Network
Cuttack, March 30: The millennium city derives its identity from the two rivers straddling it – the Mahanadi and the Kathajodi. While the Kathajodi is a distributary of the Mahanadi, it is nonetheless revered widely by the people of the city.
However, rampant pollution in both rivers has been a major cause of concern for several agencies working to clean the rivers. “With the Centre taking up the task to clean the Ganges in earnest, it is high time that the state government seriously took up the task to clean the largest river of Orissa and its distributary,” said Dr Harcharan Sukhram, a resident of CDA.
The Orissa State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) seems to be lost in a world of its own as little is being done at the ground-level to curb rising pollution at both the rivers.
“The OSPCB has been in constant denial regarding reports of pollution in the rivers. The ones who are responsible for ensuring that the rivers are free of pollution keep stating that the pollution is at moderate levels and that it has remained steady over the years,” Sukhram added.
The OSPCB’s claims have been contested by Ranjan Panda, convener of Water Initiative of Orissa. Panda said pollution in Mahanadi has increased by drastic levels owing to an unabated release of effluents by industries and rising population, among other factors.
Some experts have pointed out that not all of Mahanadi’s pollution happens in Orissa; some of it happens upstream in Chhattisgarh where a large amount of effluents are released into the river before it enters Orissa. “This excuse is unacceptable. The river serves Orissa too and people here have a responsibility of keeping it clean,” said Naresh Jena, an environmentalist who lives near Link Road. Jena said several environmental issues can be taken care of if the rivers are kept clean. “The need of the hour is to spread awareness among people on the virtues of cleaning up the rivers along the lines of the Save Ganga project,” Jena said.
A study was conducted by the OSPCB back in 2013, which instead of answering pertinent questions had raised even more doubts related to water pollution across the state.
In 2012, a report by the Central Pollution Control Board had placed Mahanadi and Kathajodi on the list of the dirtiest rivers in the country. “Denial of a problem is not the solution. Authorities responsible for ensuring cleanliness of rivers need to work hard and come up with results,” said Namrata Sikandar, a resident of Station Square.
Meanwhile, a member of the OSPCB admitted that the pollution levels in Mahanadi and Kathajodi have reached an alarming stage. “Lack of manpower and sufficient sewerage plants is responsible for the situation. We have asked authorities to set up more sewerage treatment plants in Cuttack to address this very issue,” said the officer, asking not to be named.
Cuttack has seen the scourge of water-borne diseases like jaundice, yet there are few who have pondered upon or even discussed the issue of cleaning the rivers.
“Even as the state government started cleanliness drives, which anyway began late, it did not ever feel the need to highlight the issue of pollution in rivers which are considered to be the lifeline of the silver city,” said Rakesh Pradhan, a resident of Badambadi. Pradhan came up with his own solution to the issue – make river pollution an electoral issue. “If that happens, our netas will compete with each other to show their love for the river. Regardless of whether the love is genuine or not, our rivers will at least be cleaned,” said Rakesh.
