Bhubaneswar, May 8: The recently concluded Odisha Joint Entrance Examination has left the city littered with piles of leaflets and brochures lying in front of various examination centres.
This seems ironical at a time when the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation is levying tax on the protesters, who sit on dharnas and protests on Mahatma Gandhi Marg.
The civic body, however, is yet to take action against the organisations that have littered the examination centres. Earlier, the corporation, amid criticism from various quarters, had decided to levy a tax of Rs 1,000 for staging dharnas during this budget session on the basis of power granted to the civic authorities under the Orissa Municipal Corporation Act, 2003.
But, the civic authorities do not have any provision to take action against the organisations responsible for generating environmental pollution by distributing leaflets and brochures.
Forty-two examination centres were set up in the city for the joint examinations. The heaps of leaflets that were found scattered on the day after the test were advertisements for various coaching centres.
“When I reached my department, I was surprised to see piles of leaflets. Either the organisations distributing these leaflets or the authorities conducting the exams should clean up the mess. Why should we suffer for their mistakes?” asked Chandrakant Baral, an Utkal University student.
Various other examinations such as banking tests or public sector entrances, too, leave masses of leaflets and brochures at the examination centres.
It’s mostly leaflets advertising engineering colleges, management institutes and coaching institutes that create a mess after the tests.
During various entrance tests, the educational institutes often set up kiosks in front of the centres to distribute leaflets and brochures. The aspirants, however, often throw these on the centre premises.
City health officer Chandrika Prasad Das admitted there was a need to slam the brakes on the littering caused during the tests. “This morning, when I went around the city, most of the educational institutes were flooded with the leaflets,” said Das.
The leaflets are often gathered and burnt, causing air pollution. Brochures, which have a thin cover of polythene, chokes drains and mixes with the soil, posing threat to animals.
The paper leaflets, which are printed by using various synthetic colours, could also pollute groundwater.
Mayor Anant Narayan Jena said the corporation would look into the matter. “In the coming council meeting, we will discuss the matter and formulate a plan to prevent organisations from littering during entrance examinations,” said Jena.
The city generates nearly 400 tonnes of solid waste every day.
