BENGALURU: For residents of Kamala Nehru School Road, Pipeline Road, 100-ft Ring Road, Umar Bagh Layout and surrounding areas of Banashankari Temple Road ward, the basic right to clean air and a healthy environment is a far cry with the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML) and Bengaluru South City Corporation failing to address the garbage menace.
According to Gulab Pasha, a social activist with Swaraj India, Bengaluru South, vehicles engaged in waste collection do not turn up for days, forcing residents to litter street corners. The waste dump also attracts rats, mosquitoes and flies and leaves a bad stench in the air.
“There are women, elderly, children and people with comorbidities. The bad air from the waste dump makes people struggle to breathe. Despite bringing these issues up in the past, neither the contractor nor the assistant general manager of BSWML managed to resolve the issue. Worse, this kind of inhuman approach towards residents by officials has taken place at the Padmanabha Nagar Assembly segment represented by Leader of Opposition R Ashoka,” he said.
Echoing the same, Nasrulla Sharieff, a resident from Umar Bagh Layout, said due to the garbage piles and areas identified as ‘low-lying’ due to their demographic set-up, drains get choked and dirty water floods the roads if there is heavy rainfall.
“Last year, besides facing this bad air issue, there was flooding of homes. This year due to less rainfall, the issue of flooding has not happened, but the bad stench has remained unresolved from the garbage dump,” he said.
Responding to the complaints, Assistant General Manager (BSWML) Manuja Raj said a meeting was held in the presence of the MLA of the area, and the issue was discussed. The contractor has been warned to clear the waste regularly. “If repeated, action could be taken to terminate the contract,” said the official.