BENGALURU : Transporting the C and D waste to processing dumps can cost more, than just tipping it into the nearest lake or under a flyover. A resident in Kasturinagar, who led a clean-up drive in his neighbourhood, says that they called lorries to clear a pile of construction debris from under a bridge. “They said they’ll dump it at another site nearby,” says this resident, on condition of anonymity. “To transport it to BBMP’s authorised site, they charged more… but we insisted that it goes there”.
Processing units have to be located far away from the city because residents protest when one comes up in their neighbourhood, says BBMP Health Committee’s Pasha. "That's the major issue for delay in setting up these units. If we locate them away from city centre, transportation becomes a problem". Now the health committee is drafting a proposal on action against violators.
"We plan to increase the penalty from `5,000 to `1 lakh. If they repeat their offence, their construction site will be seized and they will have to go to court to release it. We will present proposal to the joint commissioner of BBMP by the end of next month," he says, adding that they are studying technologies adopted by other countries too.
Few are willing to run such units, because they think it is unprofitable, says BBMP’s Sarfaraz Khan. "We called for tenders three to four times already but no one comes forward,” he says. “Locals also protest thinking waste will be dumped around them.” For now, he says, city’s C and D waste is being recycled into material used to fill quarry pits. "It will be developed into parks," he adds.
The citizen groups have decided to take up the matter to the National Green Tribunal if the local authorities fail. Seema Garg, CEO, KLCDA was unavailable for comments.