Rain compounds problem of uncleared garbage

The heavy downpour in the city has left it stinking. Road users are forced to cover their noses, while crossing wet garbage piles.

Deputy Mayor Hemalatha Gopalaiah blamed local residents for the mess.
“People are protesting near garbage dumping yards and composting units. They are not allowing trucks to dump garbage, leading to waste mounds, especially in west Bengaluru. In case of other places, garbage should be collected at one point of every ward, for trucks to collect it. People have to co-operate,” she said.

But residents are not convinced. They point out that garbage is not stacked in just one area, but everywhere.

“Rotting garbage mixed with rainwater is a common sight in most parts of the city, especially in central Bengaluru and newly added wards. The stink is unbearable,” said Hemalatha R, a resident.

These sites have become breeding ground for mosquitoes and also feeding spaces for street dogs. Rodents can be seen jumping over the piles. It poses health hazards to people, said Iqbal K, a resident.

Prominent places where garbage piles are a common sight are Seshadripuram, Papareddypalya, Nagarbhavi, Srirampura, Magadi Road, Sunkadakatte, Banaswadi, Gandhinagar, Sarjapura main road, Koramangala, Mall-eswaram, Jalahalli, Vrishbavathi valley on outer ring road, Mysuru Road, Anjanapura, Banashankari, Bannergatta Road, Gottigere, OMBR Layout, Chickpet, Avenue Road and Ejipura.

BBMP special commissioner, solid waste management, Subodh Yadav said, “There are no issues with garbage collection across the city. But in some places, the problem can be because of lax local officers or local issues. People can contact the control rooms or me directly.”

BBMP commissioner Manjunath Prasad said following High Court directions on Thursday, the Corporation is planning to mandate composting waste at residences, instead of sending them to processing units.

“We are in talks with companies to convert waste to energy, in the seven composting sites,” he said.