NAROWAL, Aug 2: People have been putting up with bad smell and facing health hazards for long as butchers used to slaughter animals in their houses and streets instead of the slaughterhouse.

There was a slaughterhouse in the city some years ago. But it had been surrounded by residential area and turned into ruins after the butchers abandoned it on the demand of the people.

The slaughterhouse did not have water supply and electricity facility since its construction. It was learnt that the Tehsil Municipal Administration had planned a new slaughterhouse outside the city near water disposal pump a few years ago, but it could not be materialized so far.

Citizens have approached the TMA time and again, but it had failed to address the problem. Butchers association president Muhammad Rafique claimed that they did not spread filth in the city and wanted to see it clean, but there was no slaughterhouse.

He alleged that the TMA was continuously receiving fee from them for each slaughtered animal, but did not provide any facility to them in return. "If the TMA provides us a good slaughterhouse equipped with at least running water and electricity, we are ready to go there," Mr Rafique said.

When contacted, Tehsil Officer (Infrastructure) Laeeq Ahmed said the TMA had started the construction of a slaughterhouse near water disposal pump, but the tehsil council through a resolution had stopped the construction and formed a committee to suggest some alternative place for it. Now the slaughterhouse would be constructed at some other suitable place after the committee's report, he said.