Puri, July 11: The primary beach of the state, which attracts hundreds of foreign tourists every day, is so polluted that people have started complaining.

However, neither the district administration nor the municipal officials have yet cleaned up the mess on the Puri beach.

Taking up the cause, sand artist Sudarshan Patnaik today sat on a dharna, urging the administration to clean up the beach.

"The Banki Muhana releases sewage water to the sea every day, but no one is taking pains to clean the beach. Our immediate request is to put a net on the mouth of the drain that releases sewage water to the beach. It requires only a few thousand rupees to do it. But, it has not been done so far," he said.

Patnaik said it was common knowledge that the sewerage treatment plant was lying defunct. He said: "Even though crores of rupees were spent under infrastructure head during the Nabakalabar, nobody is bothered to get the treatment plant working again in an effective manner."

He said: "I have drawn brought the chief minister's attention to the issue. He took it up seriously and issued necessary instruction to the administration. But, the local administration is yet to rise to the occasion."

The sand artist said: "The municipal officials said they had a plan to set up a treatment plant here. That will take at least two to three years to come up. At least for the time being, they should engage some people to clean the beach."

Mostly foreign tourists stay on this part of the beach, he said. "To reach the beach, they have to cross the natural drainage channel, which is heavily polluted. Even the sand of the beach has turned black."

"When we make a sand sculpture here, students say their skin itches afterwards. Whatever laurels we have brought for the state through sand sculpture will soon end," rued Patnaik.

A Puri Municipality official said: "The water sewerage board plans to set up a treatment plant at a cost of Rs 2 crore. The detailed project report has been prepared."