It's a messy affair...

STINKY GARBAGE

In a desperate attempt to resolve the garbage crisis in the City, the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) set up Dry Waste Collection Centres (DWCC) within the City limits, so that a quantum of the waste transported to the landfills could be reduced.

Unable to find vacant land, the civic agency has now installed these DWCCs in residential areas. The move, which should have benefitted the City at large, has literally spelt trouble for people.

Lack of maintenance, shortage of staff and a faulty system have led to this situation, notes Keshav Murthy, the president of Jayanagar Residents’ Welfare and Cultural Association.

Out of the many wards chosen for the installation of waste converters, Pattabhimrama Nagar ward on Nanda Road near Jayanagar too has one centre. Here, two waste converters — both dry and wet — have been placed inside the Laxman Rau Park, Jayanagar.

While wet waste is supposed to be processed every 15 days to be converted into manure, dry waste has to be processed every day. However, this process seems to be restricted only to paper. The BBMP workers do not process wet waste regularly and this is taking a toll on the health of senior citizens in the area.

Keshav adds, “Every morning, one can find garbage stacked in plastic bags and dumped in one corner. The BBMP workers clear it only when they have the time. We come to the park for some fresh air but it is always stinking. And it becomes messier after a rainy day.

Most of the time, the wet waste is left to rot and that gets mixed with rain water. What if we get a disease? Maybe the BBMP is waiting for someone’s health to be affected so that it can take some action.”

In Rajarajeshwari Nagar, the garbage problem has hit the road. Srinath Babu, a resident, reveals, “The dry waste converter was installed here a year ago. Since then, the pourakarmikas have been seen only a few times. Whenever they come, they only bring more problems.

They segregate dry and wet waste on the road and for this, they block the traffic and movement is severly hampered. Despite all this, the work stays incomplete. The remains are strewn across the road, attracting mosquitoes and flies. Our complaints to the BBMP have only fallen on deaf ears.”

Similar problems persist in Vasanthapura, Uttarahalli and JP Nagar wards. However, the BBMP thinks otherwise.

According to the BBMP commissioner M Lakshminarayana, the pourakarmikas collect waste from every house, gather at a point assigned to them, pool the garbage and transport it to the DWCCs.

He adds, “We have received numerous complaints asking us to shift these DWCCs. People should understand that this waste is being generated from their own house. Also, if we want to resolve the garbage crisis, we should effectively get rid of dry waste.

So where else can we find space if not within City limits? The BBMP aims to make all the 105 wards, where the waste converters have been installed, zero-waste wards. We have even achieved 35 per cent success rate in effectively using dry waste. The solution lies in the hands of the people. They have to cooperate.” The BBMP plans to set up DWCCs in 90 other wards.

However, Ananta, a resident of Vasanthapura, begs to differ. He says, “If the BBMP cannot make people-friendly rules, how can we cooperate? The lack of maintenance of these DWCCs is making our lives miserable. They are a nuisance. When we take our complaints to the BBMP, it does not respond but expects us to cooperate.”