Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar market turns into waste dump

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, October 18

Crores spent on raising a full-fledged market at Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar on the Vallah road have gone waste. As no regular shop has opened in the market people use it as place for parking vehicles and disposing of garbage. Long delay in lifting garbage has turned the place into a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

A resident Sarbjit Singh said, “Passing through the stretch has become an onerous task. Stench emanating from the garbage dump and mosquitoes discourage people from venturing on the road. This is despite the fact that wholesale fruit and vegetable mandi is located close to the market.”

The Amritsar Improvement Trust (AIT) had constructed over 30 double storey shops with a basement in 2007. Most shops remain locked, giving the impression of being unoccupied. So, people freely dump their garbage in the parking area of the market.

Built on an area of 85 square yard, each shop has constructed area of about 800 square feet with an attached toilet and even provision for a pantry. Moreover, the entire market is open from two sides with enough room for cross ventilation.

Ravinder Kumar, Executive Engineer, AIT, said, “Despite best efforts people did not evince interest in buying these shops. The Trust managed to auction only five shops and these, too, remain locked. Finding the market unoccupied, people from the surrounding areas dump their garbage here. They do not heed to repeated warnings issued from time to time to prevent them from dumping waste in the market.”