Months gone, sewage problem still stands

Abohar, one of the "richer" subdivisions of Fazilka district in the Malwa region relatively, has poor maintenance of sewers, and streets that remain occupied by sludge. The public representations to the local administration and chief minister Parkash Singh Badal had proved futile to solve the problem.

Abohar, one of the "richer" subdivisions of Fazilka district in the Malwa region relatively, has poor maintenance of sewers, and streets that remain occupied by sludge.

The public representations to the local administration and chief minister Parkash Singh Badal had proved futile to solve the problem. "The administrative system of the municipal body of Abohar has collapsed," said Ashok Garg, a representative of the local chapter of the Indian Against Corruption (IAC) party. "Another festival season is on, and still we have no solution."

For the past 93 days, five rebel municipal councillors of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are on protest outside the municipal committee office, where their own party is in power. They seek an answer to the sewerage problem. Low-lying habitations of the poor such as Indira Colony, Idgah Colony, Nanak Nagri, Gobind Nagri, and Dyal Nagri were on the edge of an epidemic lately.

Even posh colonies such as Suraj Nagri and Sunder Nagri have turned into stinking zones because of the accumulation of sewage for the past more than 15 months. "Our lives are in disarray," said Lalit Sharma, a lawyer living in Sunder Nagri. "For the past many years, the civic authorities have failed to de-silt the sewers," said Krishan Ahuja of the neighbourhood. "The pipes are now choked and cracked."