Cleanliness and civic sense are two sides of a coin. If one goes missing, the other is simply useless. Perhaps this is the case of the Picket Nala that passes between Jubilee Bus Station and LIC Colony at West Marredpally.
For over eight months, the nala has been turned into a huge garbage dump obstructing free flow of sewerage much to the consternation of the residents living nearby. It was only during September last year that the retaining wall of the nala was broken down to clear off a fallen tree by the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) during the monsoon.
The result is that residents are facing a big stink of a problem every time it rains. “The murky waters just overflowed from the drain and flooded the streets and we couldn't walk on the road. Since then, no one has come forward to rebuild the wall despite taking the complaints to the Cantonment authorities,” says P. Srinivas, a resident.
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In the absence of the retaining wall, heaps of garbage dumped from the neighbouring areas gets accumulated blocking the flow of sewerage. It is also attracting stray dogs and other sundry animals to the area.
“Trash collectors themselves are finding it convenient to dump garbage into the nala so do those sweeping the roads,” a resident complains.
Compounding problems even more, the stagnated garbage in the nala is turning out to be a breeding ground for mosquitoes. “While we are forced to bear the stench in the morning, we are troubled with mosquitoes during nights,” said Ram Mohan Rao, another resident.
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“With monsoon just a month away we are worried over the situation getting worse,” he added.