Ludhiana: MC vehicle caught dumping waste near school, depts at odds over accountability

Municipal health officer Dr Vipan Malhotra confirmed that the vehicle seen in a photograph taken by local residents belonged to the corporation

A municipal corporation vehicle caught dumping waste in the open near Guru Nanak Public School in Model Town Extension has left the civic body’s departments at odds over accountability, despite the corporation confirming that the vehicle belongs to it.

The municipal corporation vehicle that was spotted dumping waste near the school at Model Town Extension. (HT Photo)

Municipal health officer Dr Vipan Malhotra confirmed that the vehicle seen in a photograph taken by local residents belonged to the corporation. He, however, said the trolley appeared to be from the horticulture branch and was being used to dispose of waste generated from parks.

“It appears that the horticulture branch is dumping the cutting and other similar waste from parks here,” Malhotra said.

Municipal horticulture officer Kirpal Singh rejected the claim, saying the vehicle belonged to a subsection of the Buildings and Roads (B&R) branch working around the Bus Stand area.

However, B&R executive engineer Arvind Kumar denied that the trolley belonged to his branch.

MC commissioner Ojasvi Alankar said she would investigate the matter and determine who was responsible for the dumping, following the conflicting claims by civic officials.

The unauthorised dumping has compounded the school’s sanitation woes, with the garbage site abutting its boundary wall.

School authorities said the stench from the waste frequently wafts into classrooms, causing discomfort to students and teachers.

Residents in the vicinity have also complained of the persistent foul odour.

The school claims it has spent around ₹1 lakh getting the site cleared five to six times.

School transport in-charge Gurpreet Singh Bedi, said, “We have spent around ₹1 lakh in getting this area cleaned five to six times,” he said.

“This is right adjacent to the school wall. It causes a stench and the students have to put up with it. We are troubled due to this illegal dump here. Our management has tried reaching out to the civic body and the local councillor but nothing came out of it,” said principal Darspreet Kaur.