Chandru (name changed) was rendered jobless two weeks ago after the dry waste collection centre (DWCC) that he used to manage in Ganesh Mandir ward, near Banashankari 2nd Stage, was shut down, allegedly at the behest of the local councillor.
“I was told that the DWCC building would be razed to the ground and a badminton court would come up in its place. When we asked for an alternative space to operate from, we were told to approach the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) head office,” he said, and added that residents of the locality were supportive of the centre and those who worked there.
With the centre now shut down, collection of dry waste has stopped.
Not an isolated case
This is not an isolated case. The DWCC in Shanthinagar ward was also shut down in May last year, after a handful of residents objected to it operating in the locality. Yet, those who managed the centre have not stopped collection of dry waste from houses in the locality.
Murali (name changed), who used to work in the centre, said they now function out of some space allotted to them in a DWCC in the neighbouring ward.
“Some of the residents did not want the DWCC; they failed to understand that we were actually helping them deal with their waste, preventing it from ending up in some landfill,” he said, and added that it took them more than 20 years to rise above from rag picking and get an identity card from the BBMP. “Now, we hope the efforts to shut down DWCCs doesn’t mean we have to get back to rag picking,” he said.
Waste management experts are in dismay over the development. They say public convenience cannot always trump solid waste management. If it did, transfer stations, DWCCs, and other measures taken for decentralised processing of waste cannot happen in the city.
‘Unaware of it’
BBMP’s Special Commissioner (Solid Waste Management) D. Randeep said he was unaware of the development. He said the SWM Cell would, however, raise an objection with the division that has ordered DWCC’s demolition in Ganesh Mandir ward.
“We will ask them to give the space back to the SWM Cell so that a new DWCC can be constructed or they can identify alternative land,” he said, and added that orders of the High Court of Karnataka, regulations stipulated under the SWM Rules and recommendations of the Technical Guidance Committee all stressed on decentralised processing — of which the DWCCs were an integral part.
“We should not be taking a step backwards,” he argued, and said the SWM Cell would apprise BBMP Commissioner N. Manjunath Prasad of the development.
He reiterated that the DWCCs cannot be diverted for any other purpose apart from solid waste management. “Even if they are to be diverted, officials concerned must obtain a no objection certificate from the SWM Cell first and allot alternative space for the DWCC,” he added.
