BMC asks hawkers in busy Dadar stretch to help clean roads, mops up 500kg of waste in a day

Radhika Salvi, a junior supervisor in the SWM department, explained that ahead of Mahashivratri celebrations, numerous small independent sellers from parts of Maharashtra and Gujarat come to sell ‘Bel Patra’ leaves, which are offered to Lord Shiva

In an attempt to maintain cleanliness and bring about an attitudinal change among hawkers, the Solid Waste Management (SWM) department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) organised a cleanup initiative for hawkers in Dadar on Wednesday. The stretch of road covered, among the busiest in the city, is occupied by at least 200 hawkers selling fruit, vegetables and flowers every day.

Hawkers clean up wet waste on VS Agashe Road in Dadar (Jeet Mashru)

Officials from BMC visited the Senapati Bapat Marg, Manish Market, and Vijay Nagar areas in Dadar, where approximately 500 kilograms of wet waste was collected during the drive.

Radhika Salvi, a junior supervisor in the SWM department, explained that ahead of Mahashivratri celebrations, numerous small independent sellers from parts of Maharashtra and Gujarat come to sell ‘Bel Patra’ leaves, which are offered to Lord Shiva.

SWM officials mentioned that while the encroachment action can be undertaken by BMC’s Encroachment Department, they aimed to ensure cleanliness at their end. “We ensured that the 200-250 hawkers sitting on the road cleaned the complete vicinity and put waste in one corner so that we could pick it up.”

“The idea is to bring about behavioural change. These small vendors have now agreed to keep the area clean regularly. We will keep an eye on it,” she added.