BKC school will breathe easy as garbage dump gets cleared

On August 24, HT had reported that a mountain of garbage had begun to pile up in the past two years in a plot right next to one of the most expensive schools in the city

Mumbai: Students of Ascend International School, in Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), will soon be able to heave a sigh of relief as the offensive garbage pile-up in an adjoining empty plot began to get cleared on Wednesday.

BMC workers seen removing the heap of garbage and construction debris near Ascend International School on Wednesday (Vijay Bate/HT PHOTO)

On August 24, HT had reported that a mountain of garbage had begun to pile up in the past two years in a plot right next to one of the most expensive schools in the city, which not only posed a serious health concern but also raised a stench in the monsoon.

The sanitation and solid waste management departments of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) began to clear the pile on Wednesday evening.

“We have already fined the land owner ₹10,000 under the corporation’s Swachhta Abhiyan. The owner has been asked to find the source of this garbage, and ensure that the land remains clean henceforth,” a BMC official from H-East ward, said.

Parents and students of the school have been up in arms against the civic body as well as the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) for some months now, demanding that the growing pile next to their institution be cleared. The ground, which lies between the campus in BKC-F block and the Mithi River, remained vacant and abandoned for many years.

However, it started collecting garbage in the last two years of lockdown, said school officials.

“We are still waiting for the ground to be cleared completely,” said an official from the school. Our repeated attempts to reach out to the school authorities for further comments remained futile.

For months, since the school reopened in June this year, parents as well as school authorities have approached local civic officials as well as the collector and the MMRDA, but to no avail. In two years, the pile of garbage had started towering over the school compound wall. Many parents complained about their children falling ill frequently, due to the unhygienic conditions around the campus.

“We received a complaint from a parent only on Tuesday, and immediately sent a team to inspect the site before initiating action. While the land owner has been warned, our team too will keep a vigil on this plot henceforth,” added the BMC official.