District administration's action plan against encroachments, Silchar

Special Correspondent

Silchar: It is after a long time that the district administration of Cachar bowing to the public repeated demands has taken a tough view on the encroachments by blocking drains, deposit of construction materials on public places, dumping or throwing of garbage hither and thither as well as silt deposition which is obstructing the free flow of water, leading to inundation of the greater Fatak Bazaar, the main market place and other areas of the town.

Siltation and substantial accumulation of garbage in the drains and roads leads to pollution and adversely impacts human health.

Besides, indiscriminate use of plastics, thermocols, among others for carrying fish and materials for storing fishes pollute the whole area, causing imbalance in the fragile ecosystem. As the serious problem is the rampant encroachment of footpaths and movement of stray cattle on the main and arterial roads, creating hazards to the pedestrians and movement of vehicles and also causing loss of lives and properties which put the government in an embarrassing position.

In view of the gravity of the situation, the Deputy Commissioner of Cachar cum chairman of district disaster management authority (DDMA) S Lakshmanan, has in exercise of his power directed the concerned enforcement agencies and departments like revenue circle office, district police, town and country planning, departments of water resources, animal husbandry and veterinary, fishery, health, APDCL, PWD, planning and regulatory bodies like municipal board, development authority, panchayat functionaries and pollution control board to take immediate necessary steps in order to remove encroachments and other public hazards.

The directive says dustbin is must for all shops, street vendors and restaurants, provision on depositing and keeping construction materials on the roadside. Throwing of garbage and other wastes in the drains, movement of cattle, removal of all unauthorized vendors from different areas, restrictions on the parking of trucks within the Fatak Bazaar area from 7 am to 9 am and inspection of fire safety and electrical safety by the departments concerned of all the authorized shops are to be strictly followed as per the directive. This direction is issued as per the relevant provisions of the District Management Authority Act 2005. Any violation will attract Section 51 of Disaster Management Act.