Andhra Pradesh   

Living in the thick of pollution

Pashamylaram (Medak district): Villagers of Pasamylaram in Medak district have been experiencing the worst form of pollution which often causes a burning sensation in the eyes all the night.

“The pollution is at its peak from from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. After that, every thing is normal. Repeated appeals to the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) officials have yielded no result,” says 60-year old Chandraiah, a villager.

Villagers tried ‘Gandhigiri’ by honouring a PCB official and requesting him to solve the problem.

“We presented a shawl, garlanded him and pleaded with folded hands to save the village from the pollution,” says P. Srinivasa Reddy, a ward-member, who was sent to jail along with sarpanch N. Chandraiah for attacking chemical industry causing a lot of pollution.

The day after Dasara, villagers had a bitter experience. The entire village was suddenly covered with thick smoke and bad odour which resulted in many villagers having vomiting and burning sensation.

Holding a private chemical company responsible for causing the pollution, the villagers attacked the company premises and caused some damage leading to the arrest of the sarpanch and some villagers. Though they were later released on the bail, their problem has not been solved yet.

“Usually, borewell are sunk for fetching water, but here it is other way round. Many industries sink borewells to pump water into the ground,” alleges Ananta Reddy another ward member.

None in the village dares to use borewell water in certain parts of the village which are completely polluted.

“We do not use that water even for a bath, leave alone drinking,” say villagers pointing out that sale of borewell water has been completely stopped in the village.

They fear that it may not take long for the entire groundwater in the village to get completely polluted.

The PCB officials are yet to ascertain the facts. “We are monitoring the situation. Member secretary of APPCB has appointed a technical committee which will visit the village soon,” said PCB official Sriramulu.

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