Temple town strives to keep itself clean

The Chikkatirupati Gram Panchayat has ensured that its villages have one enviable trait that outshines many others in the district — hygiene.

The Gram Panchayat (GP) currently has jurisdiction over 13 villages and more than 12,000 residents.

Chikkatirupati itself is close to the State capital, Bangalore, as well as the Tamil Nadu border. Home to the historic Venkataramanaswamy temple, the town also contains several function and marriage halls, which attract hundreds of people every day.

The result was a large buildup of waste and garbage, primarily from customers of petty stalls.

“Much of the waste accumulated by the roadsides are in the form of decomposing flowers and fruits, but also included polythene cartons and bags,” a GP official said.

Alarmed by the garbage, the Lakkur and Chikkatirupati Gram Panchayats made strong efforts to ensure that waste was cleaned from the streets and roadsides and prevented from returning.

Some 100 polythene bins were installed near the petty stalls, to help customers dispose of tea cups and other trash. “This has ensured that the streets are free of such rubbish, which was a major inconvenience for residents of the town,” a GP official said.

Morning duties

Workers have also been appointed to collect waste. Many have been provided with pushcarts to transport refuse.

Every morning, the sanitation workers collect garbage from the polythene bins and transport them outside the town. They also collect waste from the roadside. Underground drains in all villages under the GP are also cleaned two to three times a year.

Many residents and visitors are thrilled by the measures. Nagaraj, Subramanya, Rama and Mamatha, all visitors from Bangalore, praised the efforts of the GP.

“The new look of Chikkatirupati is a welcome change. We used to find it difficult to visit the temple town because of the sheer lack of hygiene. It was very dirty, with refuse thrown everywhere.

Bringing children here was a dangerous option. Now, it is a delight to visit Chikkatirupati. We hope the Gram Panchayat continues its good work, as it will also help tourism,” they said.

Panchayat member V Nagesh explained that the cleanup was a combined effort. “The change in the hygienic condition of villages was brought about with the cooperation of elected representatives and administrative officers.

But we also need the help of citizens to clean waste from the village every day. We can be assured that there will be no hygiene-related health problems if the next president of the Panchayat continues the current cleanliness campaign,” he said.