The project financed by the Norwegian government and appreciated by many people, is on the verge of closure, thanks to the apathy of BBMP.
One of the well-managed waste management programmes in the city, financed by the Norwegian government and appreciated by many people, is on the verge of closure, thanks to the apathy of Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
The waste management committee (WMC) was started by Kalayannagar Residents’ Welfare Association (KRWA) with support from the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and the Centre for Environment Education in 1999. The Norwegian government had provided financial assistance. The project aimed to collect household waste daily and compost organic and biodegradable waste.
The WMC had initially collected Rs15 a month from each house towards payment of workers.
“There was no mechanism to dispose of garbage and household waste when the BDA formed this layout. KRWA members had convinced the residents to pay Rs15 per month towards workers’ payment and maintenance,’’ said CM Subbaiah, president, KRWA.
Subbaiah added that many dignitaries had visited the compost unit situated near the BDA office at Kalyannagar. The project was going on well until the BBMP started collecting garbage cess along with property tax.
The residents, who did not object when contribution was hiked to Rs25 from Rs15 per month, started questioning the need to pay Rs25 per month in addition to the garbage cess.
“There are some residents who do not want to pay Rs25 since they have already been paying garbage cess to the BBMP. Unfortunately, they do not understand that their non-cooperation will lead to the closure of one of the well-maintained waste management programmes in the city. We have decided to collect garbage irrespective of whether we receive Rs25 from each house or not,’’ said Suma Ramachandra, vice president, WMC.
Uma Muralidhar, president, WMC, said about Rs1 lakh was needed every month to continue the programme effectively.
“The BBMP has been paying Rs25,000 per month to WMC towards maintenance. Its contribution is not sufficient even to pay the workers, who collect garbage. So we are requesting the residents not to stop their contribution,’’ Uma said.
It may be recalled that BBMP had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with KRWA on January 23, 2006 to pay `20,000 per month. The BBMP had agreed to increase the amount to `25,000 from August 2009.
The validity of the MoU was over on January 22, 2010. The committee members tried to renew the MoU, but the BBMP officials kept it pending due to reasons best known to them.
For the last five months, the BBMP has not been paying Rs25,000 per month, thus causing problems for WMC.
“It is unfortunate that BBMP authorities are not helping the longest-sustained natural waste disposal unit in the city that has been catering to the needs of more than 2,000 houses for more than 10 years,’’ said DS Rajashekar, secretary, WMC.
Meanwhile, KC Shivashankar, additional commissioner (west), BBMP, said measures would be taken to clear WMC’s pending bills. “We will handover the money as early as possible,’’ he said.
However, A Kodanda Reddy, corporator, Banaswadi Ward, said he was not in favour of WMC collecting money from residents as well as from the BBMP.
“I want the BBMP to take up garbage cleaning work at Kalyannagar on par with other areas in the city. I came to know that many residents are opposing the WMC collecting money from them. It is better to have a single tender to clear the garbage for the entire ward,’’ he said.
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