VELLORE: Vellore’s Old Bus Stand has turned into a stink zone as garbage trucks in the area started using the facility as a parking lot. The stench of garbage assails hundreds of passengers and bus crew even befo re they enter the place.
According to sources, buses towards Anaikattu, Odugathur, Latheri, KV Kuppam, Gudiyatham, Katpadi and Arcot among other areas are operated out of the bus stand and several hundreds of people are boarding the bus from here on a daily basis. However, the garbage-laden vehicles have become a common sight at Old Bus Stand, overflowing with trash every evening, empty and idle in the morning. Allegedly, these trucks also occupy spaces explicitly marked for buses.
SJ Raja(38) of Sholavaram, who frequents the Old Bus Stand to get to work daily, said, “The unbearable odour emanating from the garbage trucks is a serious concern. I have even experienced throat problems after inhaling the stench. Authorities should immediately find an alternative location to park these vehicles. The situation raises serious questions regarding the city’s sanitation priorities.”
Another commuter said, “In the evening, the side of the bus stand near the Thiruvalluvar statue is packed with garbage trucks and this has led to a mosquito problem in the locality.”
A bus driver revealed that due to garbage trucks taking up spaces designated for buses, buses now have to be parked in the middle of the bus stand near the statue. “Two-wheelers and autos already cause a space crunch within the premises and now the garbage trucks have added on to the problem,” he said.
A corporation official told TNIE, “We have a divisional office in the Old Bus Stand area and the garbage trucks collect waste from the vicinity only. The trucks, after collecting waste, end up at the bus stand due to the absence of another suitable location.”