| Pesticide industries spewing toxic effect in Samba | | Pollution takes toll of people's health, agriculture | | Neeraj Badyal
SAMBA, July 7: With an aim to provide employment to local youth and to carry out economic reforms in the region hundreds of Industrial units were established in Samba district, but beyond employment and economic growth especially from pesticide and chemical factories people received only contaminated environment and diseases. In 2001, hundreds of industrial units were started in Samba and 25 of them had pesticide and chemical factories which in defiance of rules promoted pollution in the area, causing hazardous effects in fields owned by 180 families of Burj Tanda in Supwal area of Samba district were involved in vegetable farming. The vegetable production has almost stopped, a local, Parminder Singh said.
He said that they have lost their ancestral vegetable crop farming business to these pesticide and chemical factories. "In this regard they held strong protests against State Pollution Control Board and State Government to put pressure on Government to close the pesticide units", said Nikka Singh, former Sarpanch of Burj Tanda. "There are several cases in which number of people suffered by pollution diseases including me", said Dwarka Nath, local resident of Burj Tanda village of Samba who had skin disease problem due to polluted water. From long time they are demanding the closure of pesticide and chemical factories, he added. We inspect factories in routine and mandate them to follow the rules especially pesticide and chemical factories, said Anil Sharma, District in Charge State Pollution Control Board. "Pollution has been controlled to some extent and farmers have started farming now", he added. |
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