CUTTACK: Large-scale discontentment is brewing among the residents belonging to six underdeveloped wards as the authorities of Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) have been turning a blind eye towards providing basic amenities to the areas.
Waterlogging and poor sanitation remains a major cause of concern for residents of Jagatpur, Nimpur, Balikuda, Subhadrapur, Gopalpur, Pratapnagari and Telengapentha localities in the city under wards 48, 49, 56, 57, 58 and 59. The problem becomes acute during monsoon when the roads in these localities get waterlogged.
Peeved over the civic body’s negligence, a resident of Jagannath Vihar in ward no 57 said even as CMC collects taxes from locals under different heads, it is yet to provide basic facilities to them. “In the absence of drainage system, most of the residential areas in the six wards get inundated with sewerage and overflowing water bodies,” he said.
CMC’s sanitary workers seldom visit the localities where improper sanitation and growth of vegetation provides an ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes. The six wards have been excluded from JICA-funded Integrated Sanitation Improvement Project ISIP) which is being implemented by Odisha Water Supply and Sewerage Board (OWSSB) for building a comprehensive sewerage system in the city.
“In 2014, we were promised a drainage system in our area. But, nothing tangible has yet been done in this regard till date. It seems the civic body is not interested in developing the six neglected wards. Even, the Housing and Urban Development Minister who is a native of the city has never raised the issue with the officials of CMC,” said former corporator of ward no 57 Lalit Sekhar Nayak.
Echoing similar views, former corporator of ward no 58 Rajkumari Swain said waterlogging remains a pertinent problem in the wards whose residents suffer throughout the year. Meanwhile, CMC Commissioner Ananya Das said there is no plan to include the six wards in JICA-funded Integrated Sanitation Improvement Project. “We, however, have urged the Drainage department to prepare a master plan for a drainage system in the six wards and a detailed project report through a reputed consultancy. The survey work for the same is underway,” she said.