Garbage trucks skip landfills as villagers start agitation

 The protest by farmers coupled with an agitation by villagers prevented garbage vehicles from reaching the waste-processing units at Seegehalli and Kannahalli off Magadi Road, northwest Bengaluru, on Thursday. As a result, garbage remained uncleared in and around Yeshwantpur.

Residents of villages around the two units stayed true to their earlier announcement as they erected a marquee and raised slogans against dumping of garbage at the two facilities. Sensing trouble, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) chose not to send any garbage vehicle there.

A large number of women, young men and children participated in the agitation. They said the two units had become the breeding grou-nds for mosquitoes and flies and made their lives misera-ble.

P L Mohan Raju, secretary of Kannahalli, Seegehalli Garbage Unit Protest Committee, put the number of protesters at 3,000, including women and children.

“Because of our protest, no garbage truck entered these facilities,” he said. “No BBMP or government official came to listen to our problems.”

He declared that the agitation would continue even at night with nearly 400 people staying in the marquee. “The agitation is indefinite and the current pace will be maintained till Monday. If the administration is unmoved, we’ll intensify the movement,” Raju said.

There was, however, no immediate impact of the protest on Bengaluru. The BBMP is learnt to have diverted the trucks elsewhere. Palike officials were not available for comment.