Pahadi Shareef, a revered area, too faces civic issues

Jalpally: Of the total 28 wards, the Pahadi Shareef area, in Ward 12, also adds another filthy slum in the cap of Jalpally municipality, on the city outskirts, with pathetic civic conditions.

Sharing unhygienic culture of neighbouring wards, the area and surrounding colonies too face civic problems like lack of sanitation, sewage and roads, to say the least.

Messy state of affairs like heaps of garbage at every few meters, trash- filled streets, silt in bylanes ducts caused by the recent rain and ditches with filth in the midst of lanes are the immediate images of the area that welcome visitors.

Despite having a shrine of a renowned holy saint Hazrath Baba Sharfuddin of Suharwardi lineage after whom the area is named, sanitary arrangements in the area have been thrown to the wind as streets and by-lanes, besides roads leading to the shrine, can be seen filled with trash unabashedly scattered.

More pathetic is the situation of 'Pahadi Shareef Arch', considered as entry point to the area. The façade of the arch wears an unwholesome ambiance due to untidy environment and welcomes visitors with a ditch on the right side at the very first appearance can be seen filled with filth.

Explaining the civic conditions of the ward, Mohd Kareem, a resident, said, "Leave alone maintaining sanitation in the locality areas, the famous 'Pahadi Shareef Arch' itself is not at all safe from gushing filth and scattered trash"

"No measures were taken for years to improve the ambiance of the arch which carries the name of the holy saint," he said, adding that "the open ditch filled with filth remained untouched for years that turned the very appearance of the area into an awful state." Similar is the situation in other three localities--Old Police Quarters, Mumtaz Bagh and Old Dargah Basti, where people complain of total lack of civic services.

According to Mohd Kareem, another resident, "the Pahadi Shareef main area is the oldest and most famous tourist spot on the city outskirts due to the presence of the shrine. Devotees irrespective of religions visit every day. However, no proper sanitation is being maintained in this part of the area to make it look neat and tidy. Neither garbage collection is being done regularly nor dumping spots exist to dispose of trash."