Villagers plead for curbing water pollution

Bhadradri-Kothagudem: Villagers in the industrial area of Sarapaka under the Burgumpahad mandal in the district are suffering from air and water pollution due to the effluents let out by the local ITC industry.

The ITC PSPD (Paperboards and Specialty Papers Division) factory has been letting out the effluents allegedly without treating through Basappa camp and Bhaskar Nagar via Reddipalem Agriculture fields. It is said that they were releasing the effluents into the river Godavari.

Speaking to Hans India, a Pollution Control department official on condition of anonymity said, "The heavy metals and untreated water from the factory would pose a health hazard to the people. Besides, cultivating crops with such water would also have a serious impact on the health."

"Earlier the department had alerted the villagers and tried to create some awareness," he said, adding that there was a need to conduct a detailed study on the environmental impact of pollution by the ITC. "This has become more important since the villagers downstream were using this water," he added.

Apart from water pollution, air pollution is also on the rise, complain the people of these villages. They say that the number of vehicle movement particularly heavy vehicles had increased leading to air pollution. "The district authorities are not taking any action against arresting the pollution," the villagers allege, adding that even the youth from these areas were not getting jobs in the ITC."