Choked drain and (above) dumped garbage in the Pension Lane area in Cuttack. Pictures by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, April 6: Like many other localities of the Silver City, the residents of the Pension Lane area are also having a harrowing time because of lack of initiatives on part of the civic authorities to improve the living condition there.

The Pension Lane area, which falls in ward No. 12 of the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC), is suffering from acute sanitation problems. The residents of this area claim that no step has been taken towards maintaining cleanliness here.

“Sanitation is a major concern for the residents of the Pension Lane area. The number of dustbins here is not sufficient. Moreover, because of no identified dumping zones, many people are forced to throw garbage and other household waste on the roadsides, which takes days to get cleaned up,” said Abdul Waheed (40), a local resident.

Though we have brought these issues to the notice of the authorities, no step has so far been taken for removal of garbage on a daily basis, he added.

Apart from this, better roads and a proper drainage system have always remained a distant dream for the residents of Pension Lane.

According to the residents, there has been no effort to solve the key problems, including repair of the roads and drains, which creates a lot of trouble for them.

“The roads and drains of this area are in bad shape. Most of the channels are on the verge of collapse. Because of non-removal of silt from the drains, there have been problems in the discharge of wastewater from the locality to the main stormwater channel No. 1,” said Mansoor Khan (37), another local resident.

Pension Lane, located near Suhat and Patapole, is a low-lying area. Residents here face lot of problems because of waterlogging during the monsoon.

On the other hand, local councillor A. Ahalya Devi said that adequate steps are being taken to solve the grievances of the residents.

“We are trying to maintain sanitation here. At present, 29 sanitary staff, including sweepers, are engaged for daily removal of garbage and cleaning of roads in the entire ward. The ward has a population of over 10,000,” she said.

“Work for the construction and repair of roads has been completed in many localities in ward No. 12. There is a proposal for the repair of roads in the Pension Lane area as well,” she added.

Similarly, desiltation work has begun in some areas, and other drains in the locality will also be covered up soon. The repair works of drains is also expected to begin from this month, the councillor added.