COIMBATORE: Garbage has piled up along several roads in the city, especially after the pooja festivities, as a section of sanitary workers from Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) have been on strike for the past few days.
Owing to the Aayudha Pooja festival, waste generated across the city increased in the last two days and has not been removed yet. “The entire city looks like a dump yard now. Each and every dustbin placed by the civic body is overflowing with waste such as banana stems and other decorative items used for the festival,” said Venkata Narayanan, a resident of Vadavalli, adding foul odour has been emanating from it. He added that cows and stray dogs have been feeding on these wastes on the streets, blocking the roads. Several residents and social activists also raised concerns over the issue and have demanded the civic body to take necessary action.
The sanitary workers started an indefinite strike last Friday insisting on their list of demands, which include wage hike, permanent jobs and withdrawal of privatising the garbage collection work. Speaking to TNIE, CCMC deputy commissioner K Sivakumar said, “Usually, waste generated after the pooja festivities increases and the extra waste coupled with the sanitary workers’ strike has made the city look unclean with garbage piles.
Currently, we have deployed earth movers and trucks and engaged permanent sanitary workers to clear the waste. We will be holding another round of talks with the sanitary labourers and expect the strike to come to an end soon. All the waste accumulated will be cleared as soon as possible.”