C i v i c -- N o t e s

Parade Ground garbage raises a stink Arteev Sharma The scare of being infected with the stink emanating from the garbage dumping yard outside the Parade ground is making the pedestrians in general and people residing in and around locality in particular live on tenterhooks.

Despite the fact that the dumping yard is away from residential locality, the stink emanating from the place envelops over a radius of more than a hundred metres.

Ironically, garbage, tonnes of it, dumped daily at the dumping ground Parade is making the place a breeding ground for mosquitoes and flies.

But the inevitable garbage dumping continues to make matters worse and has made pedestrians, shopkeepers and players who usually come here to play cricket vulnerable to various diseases.

"We have been living amidst stench from garbage.

The dumping site has been the source of not merely civic nuisance, but ill-health.

We had registered a complaint with the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) that the garbage dumping was affecting the health of the residents since long but so far not action has been taken in this regard," complained the residents of Parade and its adjoining areas.

They further complained that they have been suffering from respiratory problems due to inhaling fumes from the burning garbage which contained plastics bags and items.

"The place had an assortment of filth from the surrounding areas including banana leaves, egg shells from bakeries and leftovers from marriage feasts dumped at the garbage yard attract cattle and dogs which have made our life miserable," they maintained.

They added that the repeated complaints to the concerned officials met no response, adding that it has become a full-fledged dumping site for both organic and inorganic wastes, building rubble and broken trees.

It may be mentioned that central government under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) has sanctioned a handsome amount for sanitation programme in Jammu city.

Under this programme, all the dumping sites within the city limits would be shifted its outskirts.

Though the funds have been sanctioned by the central government, the people of city are facing the burnt of "callousness" on the part of concerned officials and "bureaucratic red-tape".