Residents and business owners from Itwari have complained against gold and silversmiths in the area releasing residues that have choked the drainage lines. They say that blockage is leading to environmental as well as health problems. The complaint has been forwarded to Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) through two local NGOs. The residents had contacted both Anti Adulteration Consumer Society and Grahak Raja Sanrakshan Samiti in this regard. An acid solution is used to give a finer finishing to the ornaments which is usually disposed of in the gutter line of the area. This has blocked the already old drainage system, with the contents often being spilt across the roads. MPCB has initiated an inquiry into the matter. "The acid solution has deposits of heavy metals like copper, gold and silver mixed with it. This puts a lot of pressure on the old sewer line which is hardly ever cleaned," said Kamalnarayan Nampalliwar, a local businessman and president of Grahak Raja Sanrakshan Samiti. "Also, the fumes released from this residue causes irreparable environmental damage. Until now, there seems to be no regulations about dumping this waste. We wish that this case leads to formation of relevant rules," said Mohammed Shahid Sharif from Anti Adulteration Consumer Society. An official from MPCB confirmed that a complaint had been made. "We have already started preliminary inquiry which involves field study and interviews with the residents. Depending on the observations we make, we would decide further course of action. If any violations come to our notice, we will warn the people concerned and suitable legal action will then be taken against them," he said. "As a resident of the locality, the absolute lack of civic sense and hygiene among citizens, shop keepers and business owners is disheartening," said Dr Santosh Modi who has been running a clinic at Shahid Chowk, Itwari, for more than two decades. He said since the liquid waste often spills out from the blocked drains, people come in contact with it directly leading to many skin and respiratory diseases. A source from NMC said that though the drainage cleaning is done periodically, the small road and lanes in Itwari make it difficult to carry out the work using machines. Also, being a business area, there is rush throughout the day and any cleaning work would cause inconvenience to people, the source added. East Nagpur MLA Krishna Khopde said he had no idea about this problem faced by the residents. "If residents had approached us, we would have helped them too. I will look into the matter and ensure that sufficient steps are taken to provide them relief," he said. Nagpur Sarafa Association president Ravikant Harde said they have not got any official notification on the issue. "We regret if any harm has been inadvertently caused by any of our actions. We would be willing to arrive at a solution that is acceptable to everybody involved," he said.