The COVID-19 fear has gripped many in the city. Social media is abuzz with news attributing the modes of transmission of virus to poultry and seafood. While it has been established by medical professionals that the virus has nothing to do with either of them, consumers are still wary of purchasing fish and chicken. Fish vendors in Kasimedu fishing harbour are facing a hard time as it is, and adding to their burden is the heaps of garbage.
Vendors are forced to make a living amid piles of waste that remain uncleared for months, lowering the hygiene standards to questionable limits. One of the main reasons behind this unending problem is extremely poor door-to-door solid waste collection by the Corporation. As a result, overflowing bins and makeshift dumpyards, like this one, are a common sight in Tondiarpet. Though this area generates much more waste (396 metric tonnes) than zones like Valasaravakkam (108 mt) or Alandur (167 mt), there are only 1,500 conservancy staff employed in this zone.
According to the residents, solid waste of all kinds, including huge pieces of wood from damaged boats make this place, where fish is regularly sold, dirty. Garbage, in turn, attracts mosquitoes which adds to the menace. TNIE reported in May 2019 about the same issue. Though officials cleaned up the place then, things went back to the same almost immediately. Fishermen saw their market place once again being sullied by garbage which was thrown by residents and small trucks from the Corporation. When TNIE visited the spot it was obvious that fishermen too were dumping broken boat pieces.
The fishing community blames residents, from areas like Royapuram and Tondiarpet, for dumping garbage here. “We often see women from housing board tenements dump garbage right next to the fish market. If we tell them to not do so, they argue saying that they have no other place to dispose of the trash. The stench gets unbearable. Officials hardly take note of this,” rued Ponniammal, a fish vendor at the market.
Another problem is the lack of coordination between Kasimedu Harbour Committee and Corporation officials over clearing the garbage. As the committee comes under the Central Ministry of Animal Husbandry, they are supposed to pay a fee to the Corporation for clearing the garbage from their property. Delays in this process puts fish sellers at a disadvantage. “We got clearance from the Corporation to clear the garbage ourselves, only last week. This will be cleared immediately. But we need their cooperation to avoid such incidents in the future,” said a committee official.