Bengaluru Urban Development Minister G Parameshwara announced that the fine for indiscriminate garbage dumping and the burning of waste has been increased from Rs 100 to Rs 500. He stressed that this rule will be followed strictly.
Parameshwara was addressing reporters at the BBMP Office in Malleswaram following a meeting with officials from the civic body's Solid Waste Management Department.
"There are black spots on the sides of the roads because of haphazard waste dumping and burning. So the proposal was made to increase the amount of fine from Rs 100 to Rs 500. We will also appoint a retired army personnel to monitor and penalise offenders," he said.
The retired army personnel will act as garbage marshals in each ward. Currently, 15 marshals are working under the BBMP as part of a pilot project. The garbage marshals are being introduced as per court orders and were proposed by the BBMP to the state government.
"Retired army personnel will be appointed to monitor indiscriminate garbage dumping as soon as the state government gives its assent to the proposal," confirmed BBMP Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun.
Parameshwara added that the proposal to scale up the project has been put forward and will soon be approved. The decision comes after the Karnataka High Court recently took up a fresh case relating to the city’s infamous garbage problem. The bench of Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari and Justice SG Pandit asked the BBMP to clean up the garbage in the city by 31 October and come up with a concrete plan to ensure that a system of garbage disposal is in place in the city. The deadline was later extended to Deepavali, 6 November.
According to the home minister's office, there are 29 lakh houses in Bengaluru producing 5,700 tons of garbage every day. 4,200 tons are being generated by residences while another 1,500 tons is being generated by establishments like hotels. 4,213 auto-tippers are collecting litter from residential areas while the BBMP also has 566 compactors and 8 mechanical sweepers at its disposal through contractors.
Meanwhile, the urban development minister also confirmed that the Bellahalli quarry which was in the news for the dumping of mixed waste will soon be shut and in its place, a terra firma in Doddaballapura will be used instead. Bellahalli, a small hamlet around 25 km north of the city, had turned into a major problem for the city's civic bodies since most of the waste generated in Bengaluru was being dumped there. In April, the quarry caught fire, prompting civic officials to explore alternatives to dump waste. There were seven waste processing units in the area which are no longer functional.
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