2,000 black spots removed from major Bengaluru streets during 'intensive' clean-up

The BBMP has taken up an intense clean-up drive in several parts of the city in the past few days.

A three-day “intensive” clean-up exercise undertaken by municipal authorities has seen nearly 2,000 dirty spots being removed from some of the city’s major streets.

In all, BBMP officials say, over 3,700 tonnes of debris and legacy waste were cleared during the one-time drive.

Undertaken by the directions of BBMP administrator Rakesh Singh, the drive focused on removing legacy waste that usually does not get cleared despite the BBMP deploying men and machinery every year to keep the open areas clean.

Overseen by marshals, over 18,000 civic workers and citizen volunteers took part in it.

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“We had identified arterial and sub-arterial roads that had large black spots of debris and garbage. We were able to clear around 3,700 tonnes of waste in just three days,” said Sarfaraz Khan, Joint Commissioner (Solid Waste Management), BBMP.

During the drive, the BBMP released Rs 1.50 lakh for each of the 27 assembly constituencies to get rid of garbage black spots. Each constituency was given a ten-wheeler truck, an earthmover and two compactors.

Buoyed by the “success” of the drive, the BBMP plans to hold it on a regular basis to get rid of the garbage city tag.

Chaitanya S, a resident of Thalaghattapura, a suburb in the city’s south, says she witnessed one such drive at Pipeline Road three days ago. “The entire stretch was filled with garbage, which had to be cleared using machinery. We are happy that the BBMP deployed a JCB to clear the waste. There was so much garbage that it couldn’t fit into a truck,” she said.

While the resident believes such drives may deter people from throwing waste in public spaces, she asks the BBMP to collect garbage from all households daily and create awareness on segregation.

A large amount of debris and garbage was cleared from the core areas, the BBMP data shows. If true, this would mean the drive did not get much support in the outer areas where roadside dumping of debris and garbage is rampant.

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