A collective of citizens from Gračanička Street in the Nikšić neighborhood of Kličevo held a protest and a brief blockade of the street to highlight the long-term damage to the area, the drop in living standards, and health hazards they attribute mainly to the company “Mehanizacija i programat,” which operates an asphalt base nearby, alongside various legal and natural entities.

“There is significant destruction of the area, ecological pollution, and people can no longer live normally. The air quality is terrible, filled with dust and noise, making it difficult to live normally. This is a matter of existence, not anything trivial. Each day, more than 300 trucks and heavy machinery pass through here, mostly belonging to ‘Mehanizacija i programat’, whose asphalt operation lacks filters. Another individual collects waste materials, and a new investor plans to establish a large service station and truck parking area in a medium-density residential zone, which is inappropriate,” stated Boško Pavićević, whose family has resided in this part of the neighborhood since 1957.

He noted that the community has repeatedly reached out to relevant authority inspectors and organized protests, yet their concerns have gone unheard, citing incompetence among officials. He also mentioned that the director of “Mehanizacija i programat,” Dusan Đurović, refused to meet with them.

According to local residents, in addition to the noise and pollution, the destruction of roadways, and the smoke and dust emitted from the asphalt base, the unregulated disposal of waste around the Gračanica River creates further issues. They express concern for their children’s safety due to the trucks and heavy machinery, claiming that dust has become an unavoidable part of their everyday lives.

“We expected ‘Mechanization and Programat’ to at least repair this street that their trucks travel on daily, allowing us and our children to move about safely. The roads are dug up and unmaintained, and it seems anyone can dig wherever they please without consulting the locals about our dust situation. Women can’t dry their laundry outside, and we struggle to maintain basic hygiene,” said Željko Milić.

He, along with other residents, emphasizes their determination to continue the protest.

“We have no choice. Each time the roadblock will extend longer until someone acknowledges that people live here too. Instead of rectifying the degraded Gračanica riverbed and the surrounding streets for us to live like normal citizens, they continue the destruction,” Milić said, visibly upset.

Residents appeal to the authorities for swift action, urging them to stop further deterioration of the area, the long-standing decline of Gračanicka Street, and to safeguard the health of the residents.

“We have contacted various inspections and the Ministry of Urbanism and Spatial Planning. We will await their replies, and based on their response, we will consider escalating our protests,” Pavićević mentioned.

Đurović: We replace filters every six months

The director of “Mehanizacija i programat,” Dušan Đurović, refuted the locals’ claims.

“Our company is marking its 50th anniversary this year, and when we established the asphalt base, there were only a handful of houses. It was the residents who began building homes and approaching us, not the other way around. The allegation that the asphalt base lacks filters is false. We are subject to inspections, Ceti regularly conducts measurements, we replace filters every six months, and all metrics indicate we operate within the legally permissible limits,” Đurović stated to “Vijesti”.

He contends that their company does not possess enough trucks to facilitate “300 trucks and heavy machinery passing through Gračanička Street,” and that their equipment is primarily stationed at work sites.

“We are not the sole operators in this area. The spatial plan designates this region as an industrial zone, and we, in proper cooperation with local authorities, ceded part of our land for the construction of a bypass leading to the Gvozdenice bridge. Currently, we traverse the riverbed on a gravel road we maintain and we also clean debris from it. We consistently meet the needs of the Local Community and respond to their requests, and last year we received a certificate of appreciation from the Local Community for our social responsibility and support,” Đurović stressed.

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