The war of words over dengue menace between small industrial units of the city and the Government continued unabated even as the worsening dengue situation in the district did not show any sign of improvement.
The number of dengue patients at the SCB Medical College Hospital here crossed the 200-mark on Monday.
While the district administration and local civic body squarely blame the unhygienic ambience at the industrial estates as the reason behind the spread of dengue, the industrial units hold the Government responsible for the poor sanitation and drainage systems of their estates located at Jagatpur and Khapuria of the city.
Condemning the recent threat of the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) to close “errant” industrial units on the ground of creating public nuisance, the Odisha Industrial Association (OIA) on Monday retorted it saying that they are prepared to down their shutters indefinitely in protest against the anti-industrial policy of the State Government.
“The State Government allowed several slums to come up in and around industrial estates and constantly neglected their drainage and sewerage systems because small industries do not pay holding taxes. The mosquito menace in the city has worsened due to mushrooming of slums and the poor sanitation across the city,” alleged the OIA president Abani Kanungo while addressing the media here.
But on the other hand, paying a whirlwind visit to the city on the day, Health Secretary Arti Ahuja lambasted the industrial units for the dengue situation. “The premises of industrial units have turned into mosquito harvesting centres,”Ahuja commented, saying the accumulated stagnant water in these premises are full of mosquito larvae.