Finally, it required the district Minister N. Amarnatha Reddy to take a plunge to clear the C. Ramapuram garbage dumping yard issue, which attained political overtones. The issue became the bone of contention between the Tirupati and Chandragiri constituencies, while the official machinery, barring cursory spot visits, became a mute spectator.
Right from Day One, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the YSR Congress (YSRC) openly threw their hats into the ring to score political points over their rivals, instead of working together to amicably solve the issue. It all started with the Municipal Corporation of Tirupati (MCT) planning a solid waste treatment-cum-power generation plant at its dumping yard in the village, which comes under the Chandragiri Assembly constituency. The villagers who had already opposed the yard near their village, objected to the establishment of a plant here, which they feared would further pollute the air and drinking water. After a fortnight-long ruckus under tight police security and preventive arrests, the garbage is now allowed to be temporarily dumped, with an assurance by Collector P.S. Pradyumna and MCT Commissioner Ch. Hari Kiran to solve it on a permanent basis soon.
Parties take sides
The issue turned political, with Chandragiri MLA Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy (YSRC) objecting to the dumping of Tirupati's garbage on “his people” and spoiling their health. At the behest of Municipal Administration Minister P. Narayana, Tirupati MLA M. Suguna and Chittoor MP N. Sivaprasad (both TDP) held parleys with officials and villagers, but to no avail.
While the elected representatives held their respective positions, what twisted the issue out of shape was the stoic silence on the other side. Tirupati MP V. Varaprasad (YSRC) and YSRC's Tirupati in charge Bhumana Karunakar Reddy preferred to look away, while TDP's Chandragiri in charge Galla Arunakumari did not reach out to the agitating villagers, adding to the stand-off. The Minister chipped in on Thursday and brought MLA Bhaskar Reddy to the negotiating table. Consensus finally emerged that it would require three months to shift the yard, to which both the parties agreed, thus bringing curtains, albeit temporarily, on the issue.
