You feel it before you see it. A putrid stench sticks like glue to the air at Noida's Arun Vihar. A few breaths, and you feel the tingle in your nostrils and throat. It makes you want to track back, cleanse your windpipe, and walk back in, more prepared.
But you know it's going to be a short visit. For nearly 10,000 people who live along and adjacent to the 1.5km-long drain that cuts through sectors 28, 29 and 37, there is no escape. They have been blighted by this stench for years as the drain in the backyard has permeated their lives, health, relationships and the idea of home. The families most affected are in wards 2A (Sector 28), 4, 5, 5A and 6A (Sector 29), 11A and parts of 11 (Sector 37).
