Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar’s plan to relocate waste processing facilities from Bengaluru to neighboring districts has triggered strong opposition from JD(S) leader and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy.
On Sunday, Kumaraswamy vehemently expressed his concerns, warning against using neighbouring areas like Ramanagara as dumping grounds for Bengaluru’s waste under the pretext of promoting Brand Bengaluru.
Kumaraswamy called upon the state government to immediately abandon its proposal to establish four waste dump yards in different directions around Bengaluru, citing suspicions of corruption associated with the project.
He further alleged that the underlying motive behind relocating these dump yards to the outskirts was to acquire lands within the city limits for potential real estate development in the future.
In a statement issued by his office, Kumaraswamy said, “Shivakumar has directed authorities to identify four 100-acre plots for the disposal of waste generated in Bengaluru. The Bengaluru civic body generates approximately 1,650 metric tonnes of garbage daily. What will be the fate of residents in these districts if such a massive quantity of waste is dumped in their vicinity?”
Kumaraswamy underscored the significance of districts neighbouring Bengaluru, such as Ramanagara, Chikkaballapur, Bengaluru Rural and Kolar, which are renowned for their contributions to horticulture, silk production and dairy farming.
He expressed concerns that disposing of such a substantial amount of waste in these areas would not only harm these vital industries, but also severely disrupt the local biodiversity. He said that he will not allow Brand Bengaluru to thrive at their expense.
“I will not allow Brand Bengaluru to be built at the expense of lakhs of people in these districts,” he warned.
Kumaraswamy also drew attention to the risk of transforming Ramanagara into another environmental disaster, likening it to the Vrishabhavathi river, which has transitioned from a source of clean drinking water to a highly polluted waterway due to contamination from industrial, agricultural and domestic sources.
He expressed his resolve to prevent the proposed dump yards from polluting the air and groundwater in Ramanagara.
“These proposed dump yards will not only pollute the air, but also the ground water. I will not allow this to happen in Ramanagara,” he said.
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