Residents seek relocation of city dumping site

RAWALPINDI: A garbage dumping site set up 21 days ago on three acres at the Sunday Bazaar in the middle of Rawalpindi has triggered health complaints in nearby densely populated neighbourhoods, with residents and local activists urging the administration to move it and begin spraying operations.

Social workers and human rights activists appealed to Commissioner Amir Khattak and Deputy Commissioner Waqar Cheema, saying the site’s placement in a residential and commercial area has created serious problems for people living close by. They said the foul smell has disturbed sleep at night, while mosquitoes, flies, insects, rats and mongooses have increased around the waste mounds. Birds including kites, crows and vultures were also reported gathering at the site in search of food.

According to residents, cases of conjunctivitis, skin infections and itching have spread in surrounding localities since the dumping ground was established. They said children and women in nearby streets were particularly affected by eye irritation and redness. Residents have called on the government and the deputy commissioner to immediately spray both the surrounding areas and the garbage heaps to help prevent the spread of disease.

The activists also demanded that the dumping site be shifted outside the city. The Citizen Action Committee said the authorities had assured residents that the site would be relocated beyond the urban area by Friday.