Garbage, theft: HAL staff harassed by nearby slum

BENGALURU: The mound of garbage here, although it resembles is a landfill, is not on the outskirts of the city, like Mavallipura. This black spot is in the heart of Bengaluru, inside Tejas Enclave,t he Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) owned staff quarters on Suranjandas Road.

Residents have lived for years in the vicinity of this garbage heap, dealing with stray dogs, pests, mosquitoes, the stench and the myriad problems that come with solid waste. The residents are vulnerable to both dog attacks and dengue, as well as robberies and thefts in an area where security has been badly compromised. Ironically enough, these staff quarters are located right in front of HAL hospital, close to HAL Public school.

The garbage mound has not appeared overnight and has been around for a couple of years now, made worse by the rainy season. Water stagnates in the rubbish pile, a breeding ground for mosquitoes all through the year. Street dogs that scavenge in the heaps often leave rubbish at residents' doorsteps. The pack of dogs that frequents the quarters now has rendered children vulnerable to attacks. There have been cases of theft as well, owing to an incomplete compound wall in the area bordering Tejas Enclave and the neighbouring Anandapuram slum. HAL has been unable to complete the wall because of a good deed they performed in 1943, that backfired rather badly later.

HAL has been trying its best to resolve this, but lacks the requisite support from local bodies.

Tejas Enclave is a guarded area and only residents of HAL quarters are allowed inside without requisite permissions. Then how does so much garbage make it onto the premises? If the jurisdictional issue has stopped BBMP from taking action, what impedes HAL from ensuring the health and safety of its own staff? Residents say the issue is caused by the missing compound wall near the Anandapuram side of the quarters. They say that a compound has not been built since the residents of the adjoining Anandapuram slum, known earlier as Sudhamanagar, had complained of being denied road access because of the wall. According to HAL residents, these slum-dwellers created the garbage pile as an act of revenge.