1.5-km-long human chain against 'stinking' KCDC plant

Scores of people living in  Somasundarapalya, Hosapalya and HSR Layout formed a human chain on Sunday in protest  against the "stinking" compost plant in their midst.

Residents, among them schoolchildren and senior citizens, formed a 1.5-km-long human chain for more than two hours  to assert their  "right to breathe". The stinking compost unit has made their lives hell, they said. The organisers claimed at least 2,000 people took part in the protest.  

The protesters refrained from raising slogans and instead let their placards do the talking. The  placard messages were telling:  'Not able to breathe, shut down KCDC please', 'We need clean air and clean water' and 'Swachh HSR Beku'. One of the placards held by children read:  'Care for us, give us right2breathe.'

Kamesh Rastogi, a member of the Kudlu, Haralukunte, Hosapalya, Somsundarapalya and Parangipalya Residents' Welfare Association, slammed the BBMP for dismissing people's concerns over the  Karnataka Compost Development Corporation (KCDC) plant. Two years ago, the  civic body installed a biofilter-based odour control system as the ultimate solution to the stink. But things haven't improved, he added.  

According to Rastogi, the main  problem with the plant was that it is composting beyond its capacity. While its capacity is just 75 tonnes, it is composting up to 200 tonnes of waste,  contaminating groundwater and spreading stink over a three-kilometre radius, he added.  

But Sarfaraz Khan, Joint Commissioner (Solid Waste Management), BBMP, insisted things had improved after the installation of biofilters.