HC seeks details of money spent on clearing garbage

The High Court on Friday directed the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to submit ward-wise statement of accounts on the amount spent in clearing garbage in City from all 198 wards.

The bench also asked BBMP counsel to submit PAN and service tax numbers of contractors involved in transporting garbage to help the court understand the nature of these contracts. Hearing the PIL on mismanagement of garbage clearance in City, a division bench comprising Justice N Kumar and Justice  B V Nagarathna also directed BBMP to submit comparative expenditure chart to help the court to understand the amount spent on garbage cleared directly by BBMP and through contract services. The bench directed to submit statistics on which of the option for clearing garbage was more economical.

A member of expert committee submitted to the court that waste segregation at source could not be successfully implemented due to existing nexus between contractors and BBMP officials.

The court observed that as the expert committee had failed to submit the suggestions to improve garbage clearance system, the bench directed the committee to submit their suggestions in ten days to enable the court to pass its orders on the issue at the earliest.  

The bench later adjourned the hearing to June 13, 2014.

‘Form tree committee’

The High Court has directed BBMP to provide tree guards to protect saplings planted by the Palike. During the hearing of the suo motu petition on tree felling in the City, Leo Saldanha from Environment Support Group (ESG) submitted a report on the reality check conducted on the BBMP’s submission that, of the 10 lakh-odd saplings which were planted, 63.5 per cent have survived.

The report said that no saplings were planted in the areas where BBMP claimed hundreds of saplings were planted and that less than 20 per cent had survived on an average. He submitted that there is a huge gap between the Palike’s claims and the ground reality.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice D H Waghela directed BBMP and ESG to come up with names for the tree committee who will look into granting permission and conducting public consultation for axing trees. The committee can include members from the NGO, BBMP and experts.

The bench said there was a need to have a committee in place with the monsoon setting in. It directed the BBMP counsel and the amicus curiae to co-ordinate in appointing the committee members and adjourned the hearing to June 2.