The Umarkote-Jeypore State Highway in the town has turned utterly dusty. When a vehicle passes through the roads, suddenly a cloud of dusts appears creating much inconvenience to the passersby.
The problem is acute because of the widening of the road as the contractors executing the project have allegedly been violating norms with impunity.
Environmentalist Narayan Sahu said there is a provision of sprinkling water on the road so that dust gets settled down, but the contractors do not do it just to make money.
It not only pollutes the town’s air, but also poses health threat to people residing here. Polluted air makes a person’s
lungs weak. Constant exposure to these dusts will create respiratory problems, said Umarkote Aria Hospital medical officer Dr Santosh Kumar Panda, adding, it will also affect the people who have diseases like asthma.
Though the PWD officials are claiming that they are cleaning the road regularly and sprinkling water on it, but the real
situation is different. The residents have threatened to hold an agitation if the problem is not sorted out, said advocate of Umarkote bar Ashok Padhy.