The municipal office has been dumping the garbage in a pond, causing pollution in Itahari. This has adversely affected over 100 families living in settlements around the pond. [break]
The municipal office would dump heaps of sands in the pond to prevent the stink from spreading. But this too has stopped due to the ongoing protests.
In the past, when the municipal workers stopped collecting garbage, children would get sick, but now, even the grown-ups are running the risk of contracting diseases, says Durga Bista, a local.
The collected garbage also causes discomfort to people visiting a market held around this dumping area every Sunday and Wednesday.
The municipality owns nearly 2.5 bigahas of land, of which 10 katthas is occupied by the pond. The municipality has been dumping the garbage in the pond for the past several years.
Besides Jut Bikas Tole, the Chaurasta road in Itahari has been facing the same problem due to garbage piles.
Also, a 500-meter stretch of the East-West Highway is littered with garbage.
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