Working overtime to keep city roads clean

Working overtime to keep city roads clean

The Hindu

750 tonnes of additional waste was generated each day on Sunday and Monday

# More than 150 lorries of garbage disposed of since Sunday
# BMP takes up intensive cleaning of markets


BANGALORE: While the entire city was enjoying a four-day festival holiday, Kalyanamma and Subbamma, pourakarmikas working for private garbage contractors in the city's west zone, started their day early.

They had to forego festivities at home and work for longer hours on Sunday and Monday to ensure that the roads in their zone were kept clean.

Similarly, 10,000-odd pourakarmikas engaged in cleaning the city had a hectic schedule.

With Bangaloreans splurging on crackers and almost all the roads littered with cracker waste, it is a mammoth task for civic workers to clean up the city. While the workers had to put in extra hours of work, the drivers of lorries used to dispose the garbage had to make extra trips.

According to the private garbage contractors, 750 tonnes of additional waste was generated each day on Sunday and Monday apart from the 2,200 tonnes of normal accumulation. This included waste generated in markets, homes, commercial establishments and places of worship.

Although most of the pourakarmikas and drivers worked in double shifts, disposal of garbage was slightly hit in areas such as Shantinagar, Jayamahal, Shivajinagar, Yeshwanthpur, Chickpet and old Bangalore areas. This is because some workers and drivers did not turn up for work.

"We are doing our best to clear the additional accumulation. Be it a posh locality or a middle class area, the garbage accumulation has been the same in all places. We had to transport 18 lorry-loads of additional waste from Jeevanbimanagar alone on Monday. This is the area where most of the bureaucrats reside," general secretary of the Bangalore Mahanagara Swachate Lorry Maalikara Mattu Guttigedarara Sangha S. Balasubramaniam said.

Pointing out that more than 150 lorries of garbage had been disposed of since Sunday, Mr. Balasubramaniam said cleaning would be hectic for the next two days.

BMP Deputy Commissioner (Health) Manu Baligar told The Hindu on Monday that the civic body had taken up intensive cleaning of markets by deploying extra workers and vehicles. "We are continuously inspecting and monitoring cleaning activities. All the Medical Officers of Health and health inspectors have been directed to ensure that cleaning is not affected at any cost," he said.

While 30 per cent extra waste is generated at all markets including Sri Krishna Rajendra (SKR), Johnson, Ulsoor, Malleshwaram, Jayanagar and Russel markets, it is slightly more in residential areas, he said.

Mr. Baligar appealed to people not to throw cracker waste and used puja materials on roads. "It will be easier for the workers to collect it from the homes during the daily door-to-door collection," he added.