Mandur forgotten till it starts to stink again!
CM will visit the village at ‘right time’, says minister Ramalinga Reddy
By : shwetha satyanarayan
Update: 2014-07-02 06:23 GMT
Bengaluru: As on July 1, it’s been a month since the garbage crisis snowballed into a controversy affecting nearly 1,500 households in Mandur. The BBMP has strategically failed to solve the crisis and is still desperately seeking solutions. Even after the state government’s intervention, the BBMP is still at a loss about how to proceed. Not many villages are willing to let the BBMP dump garbage in their vicinity.
Meanwhile, chief minister Siddaramaiah, who held a meeting with the BBMP officials and Mandur villagers, seems to have washed his hands of the issue after buying time from the villagers.
Soon after the meeting on June 17, the CM was expected to visit Mandur and ‘experience’ the difficulties faced by the villagers. Sources even indicated that the CM would stay at the village. However, Mr Siddaramaiah has so far not found the time to visit the village, though over 300 villages have taken ill in the past few months due to the garbage mess.
According to district-in-charge minister Ramalinga Reddy, the CM will visit Mandur at the “right time”. He added, “We had announced that the CM would visit the village on any Saturday or Sunday. We hoped to go at the earliest but it has not been possible. We are looking for the right time to meet the villagers and will do so shortly. Since the Assembly session is going on, the CM has been busy. I will ensure that on the day he is free, we will all visit Mandur,” Mr Reddy said.
While the state government is still waiting for the right time, the villagers have questioned the purpose of ministers visiting Mandur now. “We have seen the worst in the last few months, with many falling ill and the constant stench emanating from the landfill. The situation worsened to the extent that even doctors refused to treat us. What will the CM come and do now?” said an exasperated Chandrashekar Acharya.
As per the agreement, the BBMP has started spraying disinfectants and chemicals at the landfill, which has largely reduced the stench.
“The CM will never understand our plight because by the time he visits the village there will be no stench or flies hovering around. We had challenged the government to stay with us and experience our problem, not to exchange pleasantries. So many of us have fallen ill -- what is the government doing to improve our living conditions?” he demanded. The situation deteriorates during rainy days, he rued.