CHENNAI: At Kasimedu old fishing harbour, towering piles of rotting garbage dumped near the fish market have been a common sight for locals. Fishermen frustrated with the constant menace, struggle to find a permanent solution to stop the dumping.
The harbour, which is spread over 24 hectares, is caught in between administrative struggle as the State fisheries department has been trying to take control of the harbour from the Union government for years now. Though NGOs and government officials from various departments conduct clean-up drives along the harbour, day-to-day civic activities are not being monitored.
This garbage remains uncleared, ignored by authorities and is left to rot for close to 20 days, complained fish vendors.
“People regularly smoke near this spot and if one cigarette butt falls near the garbage piles, the new boats being made nearby are in the danger of catching fire. In the evenings, we find it impossible to continue our work because of the stench and swarm of mosquitoes,” said Maya, a fisherman.
Locals allege that ward-level corporation conservancy workers collect garbage from nearby households at Singaravel Nagar, Thideer Nagar and Indira Nagar and dump it at this spot which falls under the purview of Chennai Port Trust.
A resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said he saw a corporation conservancy worker dump garbage collected in a tricycle three days ago around 9 am at the old harbour.
“They dump garbage even twice a day sometimes and after 15-20 days the same workers come to the spot and clear it. None of us know why they do this when a corporation truck comes to Jeevarathinam Salai every morning to collect waste,” the resident said.
But corporation officials from Tondiarpet zone denied the allegations of locals and said no such activity takes place.
“We do door-to-door collection of garbage strictly and send only segregated waste to the landfill. It is the Chennai Port’s responsibility to keep this area clean as it comes under their jurisdiction. If they want the corporation to clear the garbage, they will have to pay us,” said an official.
Though several attempts were made to contact Chennai port trust officials, they could not be reached for comment.