Mandur villagers ready to fight again

 Even as the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is planning to extend the deadline to end dumping of waste at Mandur, residents of Mandur are preparing for another protest in case the BBMP falls back on its word.

Chandrashekar, a member of the Mandur Gram Panchayat, said the villagers have decided not to allow a single truck into the landfill from February 1 — regardless of the cost. “We have suffered enough. Three months ago, we were told by senior Palike officials that the number of trucks would be reduced to 150 in December and 75 by January. But every day more than 100 trucks come and dump waste at the landfill after 9 pm,” he said.

 According to residents here, they have put up with the stench, mosquitoes and other problems since 2005. They complained that protests and meetings with Palike officials produced no results. Villagers claimed that Health Minister Aravind Limbavali, who is also the MLA of the Mahadevpura constituency, had come to the village to inaugurate a hospital recently and had promised to give them full support in case the BBMP does not keep its promise.

But tempers are running high here. Villagers complain that three months have passed and the Palike has not sent them an official letter explaining the future of the landfill. “We are ready to stage the protest again and this time, we are going to fight aggressively,” said a resident, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

He added that three weeks ago, they had met several BBMP officials, Mayor Venkatesh Murthy, Limbavali and BBMP Commissioner Siddaiah. “They told us that they want to extend the February 1 deadline by at least a week. We didn’t agree with their decision,” he said.