Mounting garbage hill near Sainik School in Bhubaneswar raises environmental concerns

The foul stench emanating from a Temporary Transit Centre (TTC) behind Sainik School in Bhubaneswar has severely affected the normal life of people in the nearby localities. It has become difficult for residents to go about their routine chores without covering themselves with a handkerchief.

Covering their faces is the only effective way to shield themselves from the brutal onslaught of stench and smoke. The stench is getting worse with the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) seems to be in deep slumber. No concrete measures have been taken in this regard.

The foul smell from the dumping yard fills the air right from Mancheswar, VSS Nagar, Shahid Nagar, Acharya Vihar, Damana, Chandrasekharpur, and Rangamathia area. Garbage trucks moving around in these areas have further added to the woes of the residents here.

The fear of the spread of unwanted diseases has been hovering over the residents and compounded their plight. Not just the air, but locals fear the dump yards may slowly contaminate the groundwater in the surrounding areas. Despite repeated demands, the BMC has failed to relocate the dumping yards away from the city, the locals rued.

“They have been fooling us. After protests, officials of the BMC had promised to relocate the dumping yard in three months. Later, they asked for another six months and now they are asking us to wait for another 1.5 years. They have been continuously cheating us. The dumping yard is so high that it has become a mountain,” a local alleged.

“Forget about youths and children, women and senior citizens go through unwanted problems because of this dumping yard. The air is filled with foul smell and we have to breathe it, putting our lives at risk. The groundwater is slowly becoming contaminated. This is the reason why people are dying and there are so many diseases,” said a senior citizen.

No comments could be obtained from the officials of the BMC in this regard.