Hyderabad: A huge pile of domestic garbage was set on fire at Lanco Hills in Manikonda village, raising smoke and causing great inconvenience to the neighbourhood. The fire that started around noon continued to burn till evening. Officials from Lanco reached the place and extinguished it.
Garbage burning was banned by the National Green Tribunal in December. The Tribunal has directed that a fine of Rs 5,000 to be collected from the offenders if a small pile is burnt and Rs 25,000 if a large garbage dump is set on fire.
Locals said garbage burning is a major problem. Over one lakh residents inhabit the area but only an informal garbage collection system exists and private parties that collect the waste don't bother to segregate it.
“Our repeated attempts to segregate waste and decompose it have been in vain as no authority supports us,” says a local resident Madhulika Choudhary.
“We informed panchayat officer, Padmaja Rani and the collector. Garbage is burnt daily in at least 10 different places, sometimes even on the main roads,” said Mr Sitarama Daas, president of Federation of All Colonies’ Resident Welfare Association of Manikonda, Puppalguda and Nenkampur.
In March this year, a huge landfill of waste was set on fire in the area. The Pollution Control Board was intimated, but to this date there has been no public report on whether the guilty was nabbed or fined.
