BENGALURU: The 30-odd Marshals deployed by Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to fine offenders littering the streets have collected Rs 4.8 lakh in fines along with BBMP officials.The fines started to be imposed on October 24 and as of November 20, a total of 4,925 people and vehicles have been fined. While Marshals, who patrol during the nights, have collected Rs 2.3 lakh in fines, BBMP’s Junior Health Inspectors and Assistant Executive Engineers, who check for offenders during the day, have collected Rs 2.5 lakh. About three to four Marshals are currently deployed in each of the eight zones, and are accompanied by BBMP’s officials in a Prahari vehicle.
Sarfaraz Khan, Joint Commissioner (Solid Waste Management), BBMP, said once dedicated Marshals are assigned to each of the 198 wards, the enforcement will naturally be better. “We have already seen that so many black spots have been eliminated and debris dumping has been reduced to a great extent,” he said.
A supervising official of the Marshals said, for the time being, Marshals are doubling up as they were deployed at Indira Canteens during the day and went patrolling during nights. “But once dedicated Marshals are installed, it will get much easier. The dedicated Marshals will get additional responsibilities at the ward level,” the official said.
When they began, Marshals were questioned about their credentials by several disbelieving offenders, especially because the Marshals did not have ID cards. However, with ID cards being issued and greater awareness of their roles among people, such incidents have reduced, the official said. The Marshals can dial 100 to seek police assistance in case they need it during the course of their work. Police officials have been informed about the duties of the Marshals.