COIMBATORE:The good rainfall has cheered farmers of the region, But, for those living near the Vellalore dumpyard, it has made life even more miserable.
As neither the Corporation nor the contractor bothered to take precautionary measures ahead of the rains, there is unbearable stench from the rotting garbage, which can be felt from even a distance of more than three three kms from the yard.
“We are even unable to breath freely. The Corporation should supply us masks for protection,” said K S Mohan, secretary, Kurichi-Vellalore Pollution Prevention Action Committee.
“The worst affected are the residents of Anbu Nagar, Sriram Nagar, Ramachandra Nagar and Indira Nagar. The Corporation is not carrying out maintenance works at the yard. The environment here is very unhealthy. Officials had assured us that the problem would be set right by spraying pesticides over the piled-up garbage. But we have not found any improvement. This has been the situation for three months,” he added.
“We often have headaches and feel like vomiting,” said Lalit Kumar, an engineering student from Sriram Nagar, adding, “It was not so bad three months back.”
Said a veteran athlete, V Sugunan of Karunanidhi Nagar, near Podanur, “I used to do physical exercises in the evenings. But for a couple of weeks I have not been regular because of the stench. In the evenings, the situation worsens. The stench affects lakhs of people. Children and the aged suffer the most.”
According to Mohan, the public are suffering due to a dispute between the contractor and the Corporation. “The Corporation has not released the contractor’s dues. So he is taking revenge on the people by not spraying chemicals over the garbage to prevent the stench,” he said.