Former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Sunday slammed the State government’s plan to set up four solid waste management parks, including one proposed near Ramanagara, to dump waste from Bengaluru.
He said that if the government does not reconsider its decision, then people will be out on the street in protest.
“Under the name of Brand Bengaluru, waste dumping yards are being set up in all four directions around Bengaluru. If 1,630 tonnes of garbage are dumped at these places every day, then what would be the plight of the people?” he questioned.
The JD(S) leader issued a statement on Sunday after The Hindu carried an article, about a search being on for a 100-acre land parcel in Ramanagara district for the waste park, on October 14.
At the behest of Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru Development Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who in a meeting last week said that the waste processing units and landfills would be shifted out of the city, citing complaints from those living in the vicinity of these yards, the Deputy Commissioners of Ramanagara, Bengaluru Urban, and Bengaluru Rural districts are on the lookout for land parcels.
The report had stated that Avinash Menon Rajendra, DC, had confirmed that such lands were available in the district, while officials were given directions by Dayananda K.A., Bengaluru Urban DC, and the office of the Bengaluru Rural DC to find land.
Mr. Kumaraswamy called this an attempt to worsen the already polluted environment around the State capital.
“Districts neighbouring Bengaluru are rich in agriculture, horticulture, and dairy farming. While harming the environment, biodiversity and destroying people’s lives is one thing, there is this dangerous idea to dump money worth crores into the pockets through the new dumping yards,” he said.
He further voiced his concerns saying: “The idea to dump garbage on 100 acres near Ramanagara and Bidadi, where one of the world’s best mangoes, silk, fruits, and vegetables are cultivated, reveals the hidden motives of the Deputy Chief Minister. The waterbodies of Ramanagara district have already been completely destroyed along with the Vrishabhavathi and the groundwater has also been polluted,” he said.
