After a two-year pandemic induced gap, Deepavali was celebrated this year in a grand manner. The full-blown festivities left heaps of trash on the roads of Bengaluru on Thursday. Piled up firecracker waste, plastic covers and boxes used for wrapping firecrackers were a common sight in the city.
According to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Solid Waste Management (SWM) officials, celebrations over the last three days in the city has generated an additional 1,000 tonnes of waste in addition to the waste generated every day, which is around 4,500 to 5,000 tonnes.
Parashuram Shinnalkar, Joint Commissioner, SWM, BBMP, said “Apart from dry waste, the city has generated wet waste, including loose flowers and garlands due to the festival. Approximately, an additional 1000 tonnes of waste is generated, which will be cleared by the BBMP within two days. Already, at different locations and zones, we are clearing up the garbage.”
Piles of wet and hazardous waste
Both wet waste and hazardous waste were a common sight in the city, including at residential and commercial areas. The KR Market area was strewn with wet and dry waste. According to another BBMP official, the city civic body had already started cleaning the waste by using extra compactors on Thursday. “In the last three days, the waste clearing work has been hit since many pourakarmikas are on leave celebrating the festival. But starting Thursday, waste will be cleared in a day,” he added.
According to BBMP, places that saw the most festival waste included KR Market, Yeshwanthpur market, Madiwala Market, Malleshwaram market, Yelahanka and Basavangudi.
Earlier, the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) had issued a circular to the BBMP to implement the orders of the Supreme Court to ensure proper disposal of the waste accumulated during the festive days.
