GARBAGE DUMPS ARE A MENACE

GARBAGE DUMPS ARE A MENACE
Continuing the series on Bangalore South, TOI looks into the minutiae of garbage disposal, and into what is going wrong
A T Subrahmanya & Sruthy Susan Ullas | TNN

DAY TWO SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT
BANGALORE SOUTH ZONE 51 WARDS
Bangalore: It is a simple problem of every household but at the same time, collectively, it is a menace for the locality and has been one of the major headaches for BBMP.
Solid waste management, or garbage, as it is simply called, has been a niggling problem for long, what with the city bursting at its seams and more people setting up home here. Bangalore South, one of the biggest residential localities in the city, is grappling with the issue.
Usually, BBMP assigns garbage collection or solid waste disposal to contractors, who collect the garbage from each locality and dispose of it. But when The Times of India went around the areas, one of the common problems found was garbage piling up in particular spots or on vacant sites.
Like any other area, Bangalore South has its share of garbage woes: in some localities, garbage is not collected regularly while in some others, it piles up because the collectors are not paid!
According to residents and welfare associations, vacant sites make it easy for insensitive residents to just dump the garbage here.
With South Bangalore dotted with restaurants and hotels, garbage disposal from these commercial establishments is a big cause for concern.
ROADSIDE DUMPING
In areas where there is no door-to-door garbage collection, it is a common tendency among people to dump it in a particular spot. The garbage collection vehicle arrives in the morning to sweep up the garbage pile and take it away. The problem arises when people miss the BBMP vehicle, and dump the garbage later. There are also days where the vehicle does not come to the spot, and is scattered by the wind, dogs and cows.
“The BBMP vehicle comes here twice a week to clear the area. But, the people keep dumping garbage there again. Residents should also do their bit instead of blaming the BBMP alone,” said Kumar K, a resident of Kadirenahalli.
USING VACANT SITES
One of the most common problems around Bangalore South residential areas were vacant sites being converted to dumping grounds for garbage. Almost every locality has a few, which are conveniently converted into dumps.
“There is a vacant site on 7th Main, 3rd Phase of J P Nagar. People of the area found it very convenient to dump waste there. Stray dogs and cows graze on the garbage, and strew it on to the main road. We fear that an epidemic might break out. After repeated pleas, BBMP workers clean up but do a shoddy job. This, despite the fact that an assistant police commissioner and former vice-chancellor stay here,’’ said K Kantha Raj, resident of J P Nagar.
Resident of BSK 3rd stage, M G Nayak, a retired senior bank manager who lives in front of a site-turned-litter dump, blames it on people’s lack of civil sense. “It is not right to blame BBMP for everything. People should take the initiative to keep the city clean.’’
GARBAGE IN DRAINS
Yet another common complaint of residents is contractors and commercial establishments dumping garbage in drains. At ST Bed, Koramangala, B S Anantaram, a member of Koramangala ST Bed Residents Welfare Association says: “In an area like Koramangala, commercial and residential areas co-exist. This has turned into a problem, when commercial areas, which produce a high amount of garbage every day, throw it into drains but it ultimately results in clogging and other problems, including health hazards,’’ he said.
PAY UP TO REMOVE GARBAGE
In most places, including BTM Layout, J P Nagar and Koramangala, the people also complained that garbage collectors usually demand money, or waste management becomes a difficult task.
“The lady who collects garbage in our area demanded Rs 100 a month from each household in the area. She threatened that she would not dispose of the garbage unless we give it. We went to the corporation office, later negotiated with the lady and are now paying Rs 50,” said Vimala N S, a resident of J P Nagar.
“I started the habit of giving money to the person because my neighbours do it. The lady slowly stopped coming to my house and started going only to the other houses. So even I started paying her,” said a housewife in BTM Layout. Residents suggest that BBMP should regularly monitor the contractors, who are not consistent in their work. For example, while the second stage of BTM Layout is happy with the garbage disposal, Bilekahalli Dollar Layout has not seen a BBMP vehicle for a few months now!
“Corporation vehicles do not come this side at all. We manage the waste disposal ourselves. We have made a pit on our properties and dispose of the waste there. There is a vacant site in the area, but we have ensured that none of the residents dumps garbage there,” said M R Harish, member of BTM Layout Residents’ Welfare Association. WARD WISE: The next 10 wards which lie in Bangalore South zone
135 Padarayanapura: Arafat Nagar, Vinayaka Nagar, Jai Bharat Nagar, Jagjivanram Nagar (P), Padarayanapura
136 Jagajivanaramnagar: Devaraj Urs Nagar, Goripalya, Old Guddadahalli, Jagajivanaram Nagar (P)
137 Rayapuram: Padarayanapura (P), Rayapuram, Ranganath Colony, Jagjivanram Nagar (P), CAR Police Quarters (P)
140 Chamarajpet: Ramachandra Agrahar, Chamarajpet, Raghavendra Colony, Nanjamba Agrahara
141 Azad Nagar: Kasturba Nagar, Bhakta Markendeya Layout, Vittal Nagar, Adarsh Nagar, Azad Nagar, Madigarpalya
157 Gali Anjenaya Temple: Karithimmanahalli, Raghavendra Nagar, Sanjaya Nagar, Telecom Colony, Timber Yard Layout, Venkateshpura, Byatarayanapura, Avalahalli (P)
158 Deepanjali Nagar: Deepanjali Nagar, Patel Puttanna Industrial Estate, FCI Layout, Roshan Nagar, Muthachary Industrial Estate, Ganapathi Nagar, Avalahalli (P), Veerabhadra Nagar, KEB Quarters, Raghavendra Colony
161 Hosakerehalli: Banashankari 3rd stage, Hosakerehalli, Dattatreya Nagar, Mookambika Nagar, Vidyasagar, NCERT, PES Institute of Technology
162 Girinagar: Girinagar 1st and 2nd phases, Writers’ Colony, Dasarahalli (P), Nagendra Block, Srinivasanagar (P), Banasankari 3rd Stage - 3rd and 5th blocks, Hosakerehalli Layout
156 Srinagar: Harishta Nagar, Kalidasa Nagar, Pipeline Weaver’s Colony, Banashankari I Stage, Muneshwara block, Kalappa Block, Srinagar, Dasarahalli, Dasarahalli South Block, SBM Colony, Nagendra Block