JOIN USMandur residents call off stir, set December 1 deadline
Residents of Mandur called off their protest on Tuesday, following Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s assurance that garbage would not be dumped in the landfill site of their village after December 1.
Eight villagers, who were on a hunger strike from June 15, called off their strike at 8 pm after Palike officials and City In-charge Minister Ramalinga Reddy visited them. They agreed to let 210 garbage trucks a day to enter the landfill site, for dumping waste, from the night of June 17.
Byresh M J Gowda, a resident, said that they will extend co-operation to BBMP for the next five months. “If they do not adhere to the deadline, we will hold a massive protest,” he said.
Prior to the visit of the BBMP officials, villagers held a second round of meeting with Siddaramaiah at his home office ‘Krishna’. It was attended by Mayor B S Satyanarayana, BBMP commissioner M Lakshminarayana and officials.
Freedom fighter H S Doreswamy, who took part in the meeting, sounded optimistic. He told reporters after the meeting that the chief minister had promised that after five months, garbage would not be dumped at the landfill.
“I do not believe anyone, except Siddaramaiah, as I value his words.” The chief minister assured that within three years, garbage mounds at the landfill would be cleared, Doreswamy said.
He said the chief minister had agreed to holding a review meeting every month with BBMP officials and villagers to monitor the progress.Manjunath Rao, a resident, said they had no option but go by the chief minister’s assurance.
Hard bargaining
It was a day of hard bargaining between the residents of Mandur and the government over when and how the dumping of garbage is put an end to in the village.
The villagers budged after the government assured that they will not extend the deadline by a single day, but not before apprehensions were expressed over BBMP’s promises. Arvind Limbavali, the BJP legislator from Mahadevapura constituency, said this was the last chance for the authorities. Mandur comes under the Mahadevapura constituency.
The villagers threatened that they will set garbage trucks which come to Mandur on fire, after December 1. The BBMP has promised to gradually reduce the number of vehicles bringing in garbage to the village from 210 to 150 a day, over the next three months.
In its 13-point agreement with Mandur residents, the Palike said that as soon as they take possession of the alternative land identified in Doddaballapur for dumping trash, the garbage disposal will be shifted there gradually. The waste disposal project in Doddaballapur will take off in the next four months.
Ramalinga Reddy said that he would visit Mandur once a month, while the mayor will ensure a weekly visit to the landfill site to keep tabs on the progress in clearing accumulated garbage.