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Dumping of waste in open: NGOs stage protest for second consecutive day in Ludhiana
Residents of Model Town Extension, Block-C, also joined the NGOs protesting outside MC office in Ludhiana stating that they have been raising hue and cry over the waste issue for decades, but to no avail
A day after holding a ‘selfie-point’ protest against dumping of garbage, construction and demolition waste in an open plot at the backside of Model Town Extension Block-C near Dugri canal bridge, the members of different NGOs staged a silent protest outside municipal corporation (MC) Zone D office on Monday.
Residents of Model Town Extension, Block-C, also joined the NGOs stating that they have been raising hue and cry over the issue for decades, but to no avail.
Slamming the tall claims made by the civic body regarding the solid waste management in the city, the protesters said there are hundreds of open sites where garbage is dumped illegally in the city but the MC has failed to act against the same.
The protesting members, including Kapil Arora from Council of Engineers, Kuldeep Khaira and Jaskirat Singh from Public Action Committee for Sutlej and Mattewara among others, said MC has also been trying to allegedly befool the National Green Tribunal (NGT) by submitting wrong information with the tribunal regarding solid waste management.
A resident of Model Town Extension, Block-C, Aman Khanna said, “We have been living in the area for around 35 years and we are forced to live in unhygienic conditions. Our locality is situated at the backside of the dump and foul smell is spread in the entire area. Further the area is also a breeding ground for mosquitoes. The MC has removed the garbage from the site on the request of the residents a few times, but garbage is again dumped at the site after a few days.”
Earlier on Sunday, the members of NGOs took a sarcastic dig at MC by organising a ‘selfie-point’ protest against MC at the site and clicked pictures with garbage dump in the background.
Will protest outside the residence of mayor: NGOs
Khaira said garbage, and construction and demolition waste is dumped in open plots or green belts across the city, but the MC still does not have any concrete plan to stop this illegal activity. “If the authorities fail to find a solution for the problem, we will stage a protest outside the residence of mayor Balkar Sandhu on March 26.
MC jumps into action
Soon after the members of different NGOs staged a protest outside MC Zone D office on Monday, the MC officials jumped into action and removed the garbage from the site.
MC health officer Vipal Malhotra said, “MC has been removing the garbage from the site in the past, but the residents living in the nearby areas themselves dump the garbage at the open site. Efforts are being made to find a concrete solution for the problem.”
