In the absence of a proper garbage management system, especially during festive season, traders in K.R. Market are anxious about hygiene on the market premises.
Managing cleanliness in the market with a series of festivals coming up over the next two months — starting with Ganesh Chaturthi — will be a challenge, if the BBMP does not address the situation at the earliest, said traders. The market generates about 50 tonnes of garbage every day; the quantity doubles during festive season.
It not only poses health risks but also drives away customers from the market, traders said. On Sunday, Mayor Sampath Raj and his team took up an “intensive cleanliness drive” in the market clearing piles of garbage accumulated after the Varamahalakshmi festival on Friday. As much as 110 tonnes of garbage was cleared, said the Mayor.
However, traders allege that the drive was done in haste and that only the garbage dumped outside the market was cleared. “Even on Sunday evening, the garbage inside the market had not been cleared,” said a trader.
President of K.R. Market Traders’ Association G.M. Diwakar said that uncleared garbage has been a concern for at least six months. Garbage is being dumped just outside the market and not cleared for days together, he said. “The stench is unbearable. People have stopped walking on the stretch between K.R. Market metro station and the entrance of the market,” he said.
While earlier they used to make sales till 8 p.m., now they wrap up by 5 p.m. as there are no customers, said traders attributing the decreasing footfall to this menace.
The larger concern though is the impact on health. “Many of the people working here stay on the premises. The piles of garbage are potential sites for dengue and malaria,” said Praveen Kumar, member of K.R. Market committee. This could also pose a threat to customers, he said.
Garbage transfer bins
Mr. Sampath Raj said the BBMP will set up two garbage transfer bins near the market, within a month. “The garbage collected in these bins will be cleared by trucks after midnight. A new bin will be placed for the next day. This way, there will be regular clearance of garbage,” he said.
Shops making PoP idols raided
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board officials raided four Ganesha idol manufacturing units on R.V. Road on Saturday, seizing 853 Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols from the premises. The raided units have been locked up by the officials after they were found flouting norms.
