Mavallipura turns toxic due to waste

Bangaloreans may be mighty concerned about their garbage being cleared up regularly, but it is the residents of this village who are paying a heavy price as the garbage is being thrown in illegal landfills.

A detailed study by Environmental Support Group (ESG) on the toxic effects of these landfills was released on Wednesday. The study is the result of five years of research on this village which has been on the receiving end of the municipal waste generated by the city since 2003.

The study says that the most alarming indicator of the high rate of toxicity is the sudden increase in the number of cancer cases, kidney failures and heart diseases.

Says Leo Saldanha of ESG: “There is an unbearable stench in the air. The water is poisoned with high levels of heavy metals like cadmium and mercury and unacceptable levels of bacteria. This is bound to lead to several diseases, which will emerge over a period of time.”

Despite several protests which have occasionally turned violent, none of the authorities even seem remotely interested in stopping this problem.

Culprit

According to ESG and the Dalit Sangharsha Samithi, the city corporation seems to be the first offender for setting this series of miseries into action. The then BMP signed a lease with a local man Bailappa to use his land for dumping the waste. It was later found that Bailappa never owned the land and that it belonged to the forest department.

Undeterred, BMP then shifted to around 100 acres of gomala land nearby and signed an agreement with Ramky Infrastructure Limited for a scientific landfill in 2004.

Locals, however, contend that there is nothing scientific about the landfill. Diseases are plenty and water and air remains polluted. Agricultural produce in the surrounding areas contain heavy metals. Sreenivas, a resident of the village says that they will not rest until they succeed in shifting the spot.