Senior citizens fume at deteriorating civic services

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

SILCHAR: The end of the elected civic body three months ago ushers in the coming of an administrative officer, Sumit Satawan IAS, to look after the civic affairs of the town. Since then there has been deterioration in the cleaning and disposal of garbage along roads and lanes. At different locations, heaps of wastes and garbage can be seen, creating a most unhygienic sight and posing health hazards. Residents have to live with polluted environ and contaminated air during this Corona pandemic.

Proactive Senior Citizens' Forum (PSCF), voice of the people, has pointed reference to accumulating garbage for days near South Point High School along Silchar bypass, emitting abominable smell. Cattle, dogs and cows feast on them, giving the impression there is no existence of municipal board and its conservancy department. Worst affected are the residents of Ward 17 of Chittaranjan Das Avenue. Professor Dilip Kumar Dey, an important functionary of PSCG and also resident of the area, said, "We have taken up the problem with the Deputy Commissioner of Cachar in the hope that there will be positive action."

Professor Dilip Kumar Dey, general secretary, and Niharendu Purkayastha, vice president of the Forum, repeatedly tried to contact Sumit Satawan, to discuss the problem, but could not be reached due to his preoccupations with COVID-19 management. The Forum members say from each and every lane of the Chittaranjan Avenue, cart loads of garbage collected from houses are dumped in the big dustbin of the municipal board which has virtually turned into a dumping ground. .

As there is nothing like any disposal arrangement for the daily market at National Highway, all left outs from there are also dumped in it. Just along the market are lined up goats, chickens and swans and slaughtered for public consumption every day. Quite paradoxically, amidst this abominable sight just near stands a Shiva temple. Taxes and tolls are collected at random from the market complex. But, no arrangement to clean and dispose of the garbage, rues the Forum which feels the ever expanding town needs a separate municipal board for better and efficient management of civic affairs.

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