Are empty plots dumping spots?

BANGALORE: Vasanthnagar is said to have some very good facilities. It has one of the best hospitals in Bangalore such as the Mahaveer Jain Hospital and the Fortis hospital, colleges such as the Mount Carmel College, the French consulate and the Indo-French cultural centre, Alliance Francaise. It plays host to a mall, popular restaurants and the trendy stores. But the residents of 13th Cross are in severe distress. An empty site on the street is being used as a dumping ground by the residents of the locality due to the absence of a proper garbage dumping site. The site’s dimensions are approximately 12 by 30. Almost every inch of the site is been filled with garbage.Flies are seen swarming in and out of the dump. Rats are often sniffing around the garbage for food. The stench exuding from the garbage is unbearable. Mosquitoes are a severe cause of worry. With the onset of the monsoons, their blues are just about to get worse. The authorities are walking on thin ice with people all over the country worried about catching diseases such as malaria, dengue etc. Ask the residents why their garbage is dumped in an empty site and they blame the authorities for not giving them a dumping ground. Shaila, a resident of Vasanthnagar said, “For a while we tried not to dispose the garbage here. We found other places in Vasanthanagar where there were garbage collection centres. But it is a long walk and in the end we just had no other choice.” The residents of the locality informed City Express that several complaints had been lodged to the concerned authorities to no avail.On the condition of anonymity a resident said, “The corporator is busy handling his own run-ins with the law. There is no one to listen to our problems. Hence, it is in a state of neglect.” The residents are already facing severe hassles due to repair work on Miller’s Road and the shift of the Vasanthnagar bus stop. Katta Jagadish, the corporator of the area was unavailable for comment despite numerous attempts.Nagaraj, the health officer of Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike, for  Vasanthnagar said, “The engineers of the area are responsible for this. They are organising garbage disposal centres in order to prevent the problem. They are also inviting tenders for the same.” He added that it would help if a complaint was registered on their hotline number by the dwellers of the area. Meanwhile, as residents all around Bangalore await action upon their lodged complaints, the perils this garbage can cause seem to grow by substantial amounts day by day.