NORTH LAKHIMPUR, Oct 19 - The North Lakhimpur Municipal Board has been flayed for its complicit role over the issues affecting common citizens in the town.
The town which had less than half dozen roads earlier still remains in its original shape and size with a fast-growing population.
Moreover, it faces rapid and unplanned urbanisation. Despite an increased number of vehicles, the need for expansion and extension of roads as also of the town has been ignored.
The North Lakhimpur Municipal Board (NLMB) is also responsible for the chaos and mess that occurs every day in North Lakhimpur town. The unplanned construction permitted by it is to be blamed for the present problems affecting its tax payers. A large number of commercial buildings have been allowed to be constructed by the NLMB without fulfilling the required criteria.
There seems to be no one from the authority to monitor, inspect or enforce the basic laws and rules violated by such constructions. Instead of concentrating on the betterment of civic amenities in North Lakhimpur town, the elected representatives of the Board are seen engaged mostly on petty political or party concerns.
To add to the misery, all the roads of the town are filled by hordes of stray cattle and dogs. The NLMB has also been found not taking any action on cases of blockage of drains in several areas of the town by individuals, thereby causing overflow of sewage into residential areas.
In many localities, the drains are kept open without any cover or lid, thus causing daily accidents for pedestrians. The existence of a piggery near the Deputy Commissioner�s office is another example of negligence and total lack of concern by the civic body.
The biggest problem on the streets of North Lakhimpur town is the system of allowing public transport of all modes to enjoy parking everywhere. Buses, mini-passenger vehicles on the Up-bound (Dhemaji-Jonai and Ghilamora-Dhakuakhana route) are parked on NH-15 (NT Road) from the Revenue Circle Office to CD Road-Panindra Road Tiniali from morning till evening, obviously causing a lot of difficulties to other traffic and pedestrians to move about in these areas.
Similarly, the Down-bound (Tezpur-Biswanath-Narayanpur-Bihpuria route) vehicles are parked on the public road from the ASTC stand near the Deputy Commissioner�s office to Town Bor-Masjid throughout the day and causing the same nuisance.
However, the worst traffic congestion is felt at Thakurbari area of the town where different vehicles are parked on almost the middle of the road where there are various commercial establishments upto the main Chariali of the town.
Similarly on the KB Road too, parking of vehicles in front of the mosque causes horrible traffic congestion every day. In all the cases, the role of the municipal authority is zero. One striking point of the traffic congestion on the streets of North Lakhimpur is the continuous lines of parking of two-wheelers. Different types of two-wheelers are parked on every road of the town, thereby leaving no room for four-wheelers to park.
All these factors have contributed to make North Lakhimpur town very unsafe, chaotic and disturbing for its residents. As the town appears to be without a guardian, an immediate intervention from the concerned authority is the need of the hour.