hile dumping of garbage in public places by households, and roadside eateries is posing a health hazard in localities in the city limits, the delay in clearing the garbage by the corporation workers worsens the situation.
A cross section of residents complain that they have to bear the stink every day.
Plantain leaves, and other waste materials are usually shoved into dustbins in the evening hours. Stray dogs, cattle, and pigs scatter the garbage late night or early morning hours.
By break of dawn, the garbage is found strewn all over the area, causing much hardship to early morning walkers.
These areas become breeding ground for mosquitoes.
The root cause of the problem is the non-availability of huge garbage bins.
The dustbins placed at many parts of the city are very much inadequate to meet the heavy disposal of wastes.
It is a common sight that almost all the dustbins start overflowing by evening itself, following which the huge quantity of banana leaves and other wastes is dumped in the open.
The local people complain that the night stall owners seldom worry about the public health.
In many apartments and colonies, residents’ welfare associations come to the aid of the corporation in a big way, by making arrangements for the collection of garbage.
These associations have appointed workers for door-to-door collection of garbage.
These associations can play an active role in the disposal of garbage, say environment activists.
Such an initiative will enable in giving employment to a few people, besides keeping the whole area neat and tidy.
The associations can take advantage of the maintenance charges they collect from each household for the same, they add.
Another major problem faced by the city residents is the late clearance of garbage by the corporation sanitary workers.
Unmindful of the overflowing dustbins, the workers commence their job well after the break of dawn.
With a large number of main thoroughfares and residential localities to be covered, the workers are often found in the busy areas only during the peak hours.
The corporation vehicles visit places like Agraharam streets, Suramangalam, Salem Railway Junction areas after 9am for collecting the garbage.
By this time, traffic picks up. The parking of lorries for collecting the garbage leads to traffic snarls. Moreover, the failure of the workers to cover the lorries transporting the garbage, leads to the problem of the wastes falling on the passers-by.
The corporation should ensure that all the lorries are covered using nets, says A. Nagarajan, a resident of Cherry Road.
The local residents want garbage removed before the break of dawn. S. Jayakumar, a businessman of Shevvaipet, says that the Puducherry Municipality undertakes garbage cleaning operation between 1am and 5am.
The Salem Corporation should follow suit and introduce night shift for a section of sanitary workers, which will ensure a clean city by the break of dawn.
