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A fresh
campaign to clean up Agra mounted
Wednesday, October 06, 2010 11:32:32 AM,
Brij Khandelwal, IANS
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Agra:
With a lot of Commonwealth Games visitors expected to descend on
the Taj Mahal, the city's new municipal commissioner has launched
an all-out war on garbage and pervading squalor to make it
"cleaner, greener and worthy of its great monuments".
Vinay Shankar Pandey has mobilised an army of 2,500 sanitation
workers to clean up heaps of garbage, de-clog drains and clear
polythene dumps from the Yamuna river bank.
"Agra must look fit enough to be called the city of the Taj and
its half-a-dozen precious heritage sites," Pandey told IANS in an
interview.
Although the ancient capital of the Mughal sovereigns on the banks
of the Yamuna river is home to India's biggest tourist draw, it is
described as a "dirty city" by most visitors though it remains a
major tourist destination because of its many splendid Mughal-era
buildings besides the Taj Mahal.
The need to clean up Agra has gathered a new momentum because
thousands of athletes and officials taking part in the Oct 3-14
Commonwealth Games are expected to visit the world famous 16th
century white marble monument.
Pandey said after a week-long survey that Agra's slums housed more
than 500,000 people, living in poverty and squalor. "Our findings
were alarming and shocking. We have started a four-pronged
programme to transform the slums into liveable habitats.
"A focused programme to address the problems of the slums like
lighting, hygiene, hand pumps, cleaning and providing public
toilets has been launched," he said. "The results will start
showing soon."
Agra has only 2,500 sanitation workers whereas the World Health
Organisation health manual stipulates a strength of at least 7,500
for a city of this size that has a population of about 1.5
million, said Pandey.
Work has begun in 156 of the 252 identified slums but the official
said there were 300-400 unidentified slums in the city.
According to Pandey, leather cuttings from the 300-odd small and
big shoe industries and waste from 350 'petha' making units were
the chief source of pollution. These find their way into the open
drains, clogging them.
The recent floods caused by heavy rains and the swollen Yamuna
made matters worse for the city, which recieves thousands of
Indian and foreign tourists every day.
"Very soon the petha makers will have to switch over to a new
system which will ensure that our streets in the inner city remain
clean," said Pandey, referring to the popular sweet from Agra.
The municipal commissioner complained that Agra's people lacked a
sense of pride and attachment to their heritage and history.
"One by one heritage structures, the havelis and mansions are
disappearing. We want to conserve this history and culture. Very
soon we will announce incentives for those owning these
properties.
"Also, under consideration is a proposal to levy a fee on the use
of the expression Taj Mahal, as a product or brand, because the
city must benefit from the heritage sites.
"The campaign to make the city cleaner, greener and worthy of its
great monuments will continue with full force and support of the
people. We will soon have exhibitions and contests involving
youth," he added.
(Brij
Khandelwal can be contacted at brij.k@ians.in)
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