Bengaluru: Maruti Nagar and Tavarekere, which were submerged during the last monsoon, face the same fate this year too, as indiscriminate littering of roads and footpaths and dumping of household items into storm water drains continues
Last monsoon, the glaring faultline in our infrastructure was exposed when parts of the city were marooned and storm water drains (SWDs) overflowed. The reason why the SWDs were choked was because residents indiscriminately throw solid waste into these drains, blocking the flow of water.
Maruti Nagar and Tavarekere, which come under the same BBMP ward, were the worst hit. But six month down the line, the situation has shown no improvement. At Maruti Nagar, SWDs that are meant to carry rainwater still are choked with household articles, like mattresses and thermocol, which is part of the packaging by e-commerce companies.
Roads and footpaths have been relaid, but are littered with mounds of garbage. The biggest question is: Can these two areas handle the next monsoon?
“I cannot blame the BBMP entirely, as residents too are responsible. At night, they surreptitiously throw mixed waste on roads, and at Tavarekere, waste is thrown near the SWD! An aluminium plaque has been put up with the pictures of gods and goddesses, but it has not stopped people from littering," said a resident, Mohit.
He pointed out that CCTV cameras are yet to be installed in the areas, and even if they are installed, who would monitor them to catch the wrongdoers.
Maruti Nagar has a number of paying guest accommodations and eateries, which have encroached footpaths leaving little space for pedestrians to walk. The main road in the area is busy as many motorists going from Jayanagar to Koramangala use the stretch as it cut shorts distance.
A software professional, Mr Ashwin Singh, has a list of woes. “The corporator, along with an NGO, went around the area teaching people how to segregate waste. But it has had little effect. Mainly, the PGs are to blame for the garbage menace. This has not only deprived the area of cleanliness, but will soon lead to an ecological disaster," he warned. Civic agencies too accuse PGs of littering the area late at night, while residents point to lack of monitoring system to contain the problem.
‘PGs, eateries to blame for garbage problem’
Q&A with the corporator G. Manjunath
Your ward has turned into a complete commercial area. Will it not disturb the residents?
We take action against these roadside businesses and ask them to leave, but somehow they manage to be back. Every time encroachments on the footpaths are cleared, hawkers are back soon enough. Owners of eateries too encroach the walkways with tables and chairs.
What are you doing to control the garbage menace? How are you going to rein in the residents who throw solid waste into storm water drains?
Often, PGs throw garbage late at night. When we levy fine, owners of PGs and eateries readily pay up, but are back to littering footpaths and roads. We have joined hands with an NGO and we have been demonstrating the process of segregating waste at source.
Will the BBMP install CCTV cameras in the ward to monitor the locality?
There are plans to install cameras in the vicinity for continuous monitoring of eateries and houses that litter. We had taken steps to control it, but with no results. Cameras will also help in solving crimes, if any. At the Chocolate Factory junction cameras have been installed. More will be installed soon.
