Dumped garbage and damaged roads in Palaspalli area. Pictures by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, May 15: Just a few metres away from the chief minister’s residence — Palaspalli Housing Scheme, with 198 high income group (HIG) houses — suffers from multiple civic problems.

Launched in 1987, the housing scheme was completed in 22.7 acres of land by 1992. The land came to BDA’s occupation after it was transferred from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to the general administration department. In return, land of an equal measurement was given to the AAI to expand its runway near the farmlands of the Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology. However, despite being one of the oldest HIG colonies of the city, Palaspalli has sewerage lines laid in a very limited area, such as, on both the sides of Kargil Road, which connects Palaspalli with Pokhariput.

“The situation here is strange. Every two houses here are connected to a sewerage pit of traditional type. When there is a small defect in the lines, the pits overflow and create problems in the entire area,’’ said Sukant Kumar Sahu, president of Palaspalli Development Society.

On the other hand, the rocky nature of the area makes the working of soak pits a bit difficult here. Besides, they are also not being cleaned up regularly.

The entire area, however, can be connected with sewerage pipes using modern technology. “Why not the entire area is connected with sewerage pipeline?’’ asked Sahu.

Local resident Purushottam Das Bagri, who is also a retired vice-president of the Orient Paper Mills, said: “The residents have inherited a faulty design as there is no gap between houses. Also, two rows of houses are separated by an open space and two houses are connected to a single sewerage pit. The authorities should immediately start modernising sewerage work for better sanitation.’’

Sahu also added that at many places, the conservancy areas had been encroached by residents. Not only the conservancy lanes, but open lands around the plots have also been encroached or occupied by residents. “We had requested the authorities to allot spaces to the nearest occupants, so that illegal occupation can be curbed and the government can earn some money. But we are yet to hear from the higher authorities in this regard,’’ he added.

Apart from the sewerage and drainage problems, bad roads in the area have compounded the miseries of the local residents. Members of the Palaspalli Development Society are also unhappy over use of the internal roads. “Heavy vehicles of the National Cadet Corps are plying on these roads violating their own commitment of using Kargil Road only. They have also developed a shooting range in the residential area,’’ said Sahu.

An engineer of the Orissa Water Supply and Sewerage Board (OWSSB) said: “The board had organised several residents’ meetings. But, almost all the residents have encroached the 40-feet wide conservancy lanes between the two rows of houses in the colony. So, before going for laying the sewerage line, the board will take the help of the city management group to carry out an eviction work to clean the conservancy area so that the sewerage line can be laid there. The city management group will decide the date of the eviction very soon.’’

BDA officials clarified that the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) will have to take steps regarding grievances on issues such as roads, water supply and garbage disposal. The BMC officials, however, added that roads will be renovated and steps will be taken to clean the surroundings.

The residents of Palaspalli have also complained about erratic water supply in the area. Officials of the Public Health Engineering Organisation (PHEO), however, admitted that the water supply system here needed revival, as it was developed by the BDA long ago.