Cuttack: The Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) is pulling out all the stops to maintain cleanliness at the fairground besides prioritising public health for ensuring a fun-filled Bali Yatra for the revellers this year.
To begin with, the civic body would ensure two-time sweeping at the fairground on a daily basis. “Apart from depending upon the trashcans provided by CMC, it is mandatory for the stall owners to keep dustbins of their own,” said CMC Health Standing Committee chairperson Ranjan Kumar Biswal after attending a meeting here recently.
It is no secret that several food joints at the fairground widely sell unhygienic and stale foodstuff at the historical fair. Although joint health squads of the district administration and the civic body penalise the stall owners, the unethical practice continues unabated every year.
“Dedicated food squads of the civic body would check the quality of the food being served at the stalls. In case of finding stale food at any stall, the squads will destroy the food apart from show-causing the stall owners for the same,” another senior official of the CMC said. He added that the food stall owners would also be sensitised to keep their surrounding clean.
In a bid to keep dust at bay and ensure that Bali Yatra hoppers enjoy the fair to the fullest, the civic body, along with a few social outfits, would distribute facemasks at the fairground. Similarly, adequate number of mobile toilets would also be set up at the ground.
The health standing committee would ensure that the fair goes polythene-free. “In a bid to go green, stall owners will be urged to shun using polythene carry bags and use paper bags instead. If required, we’ll arrange for the seamless supply of paper bags to the fairground,” the official added.
This apart, announcements would be made to sensitise the revellers on keeping the fairground tidy.
The civic body’s public health wing would ensure drinking water facilities at the trade fair and CMC would pull down illegal hoardings and banners put up at the fairground, Biswal said.
Sources said expecting a huge footfall to the annual trade fair and subsequent pollution, the civic body has decided to leave no stone unturned to make the fairground as well as its nearby riverbed pollution-free.
The CMC has discussed with a few social outfits to ensure temporary health camps and adequate number of ambulances at the fairground.
A representative team of the civic body would make surprise visits at the fairground to check if their strategies are effectively implemented or not.