Garbage Sullies Every Corner of Pune, Say Citizens
Keeping a city clean is as much a duty of
citizens
as it is of the civic administration. While the
Pune Municipal Corporation
(
PMC
) has been fairly active in picking up
waste
and spreading awareness, citizen apathy and lack of care continues to ensure that our streets remain littered.
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Residents across neighbourhoods attested to the fact that PMC and SWaCH staffers collect garbage strewn on the roadside everyday, but the dump almost always returns.
Pune city ranked the 10th cleanest city in the Swachh Survekshan 2023, 10 positions higher than its 2022 ranking. Despite this remarkable climb, a quick look across your neighbourhood will show that garbage has taken over every nook and corner. There seems to be no care or concern for the no littering or dumping waste rules.
Kothrud resident Makarand Shete said, "While there has been some improvement in the waste situation of the city, whether it justified a 10 position climb in the ranking is questionable. Walking next to the Kothrud garbage depot is a nightmare, due to open handling of waste and smell. Waste segregation, reduction in waste generation and home composting can help to improve the situation."
Some citizens believe that their areas have improved a great deal and working alongside officials is the only way to bring about effective and lasting change.
"I can see visible change in Wanowrie as our chronic spots have reduced. Even when citizens dump their waste, PMC officials have been swift in cleaning it up," secretary of National Society For Clean Cities Maithili Manakwad told TOI.
The Swachh Survekshan 2024 includes citizen feedback as a major component in the scoring process, with additional marks being allocated for participation. Points are also given for source segregation, waste collection and processing, reuse of recycled or treated waste, legacy waste remediation and safaimitra suraksha (worker safety).
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AUNDH-BANER WARD
#65 total chronic spots identified within the ward limits
#11 chronic spots that continue to exist
#54 chronic spots claimed to have been cleaned and beautified
Bopodi
Same Story Every Morning
Travel through Bhau Patil Road any time of the day and you will find a huge pile of garbage taking over half the carriageway width. This dump is cleared every morning by PMC staff, who segregate the waste before taking what they can.
Residents of the slum located opposite this dumping spot dispose of their waste, dry and wet combined, at night. A majority of this trash also takes up the footpath, making it a nightmare for pedestrians
Citizen Says
Despite crores of rupees being spent on Pune's Smart City project, areas like Bhau Patil Road and Aundh Road remain plagued by garbage dumping and unhygienic conditions. Residents are forced to endure foul odour and swarms of flies, while authorities struggle to enforce fines.
Efforts to address the issue with the health department and ward office yielded no solutions. Strict waste management enforcement, surveillance cameras and awareness campaigns are essential to restore cleanliness — Anne Anish | Corporate Trainer
Baner Pashan Link Road
Waste Burning Is A Menace
Chronic garbage dumping and burning spots are a common sight along Baner Pashan Link Road and its adjoining areas. According to the residents, these spots have been systematically created by contractors who pick up waste from multiple locations, including residential and commercial buildings, hotels and tapris.
The collected waste is then dumped on service roads and other open plots where there is no security and burnt every few days. The constant burning causes several challenges for the residents as the environment is already dust-heavy due to constant construction work
There is one very important contributor to garbage burning, which is biomass in the form of leaves twigs and branches, which are not collected by PMC from residential or commercial buildings.
PMC charges for collection, but the entire process is flawed and time consuming therefore most biomass is dumped and burnt — Ravindra Sinha | Member, Baner Pashan Link Road Welfare Trust
Official Says
We are doing our best to manage the waste in the ward limits. There is some help from the Adar Poonawala team as well. Maintaining vigilance at night, which is when the garbage gets dumped in Bopodi, as well as along the service roads and other spots on Baner Pashan Link Road, is a challenge — Girish Dapkekar | Asst Municipal Commissioner, Aundh-Baner Ward Office
KARVENAGAR-WARJE WARD
#45 total chronic spots within the Warje-Karvenagar ward limits
#38 of these spots have been shut, of which seven have been beautified
Unmindful Dumping By Commuters Is Blocking Drains
While SWaCH and PMC staffers are employed to clear the area falling within the limits of the Warje-Karvenagar ward office, dumping of trash, especially by commuters plying through the area, is high.
A lot of the trash is also thrown into the nullahs, which does not get cleaned as often as the roadside, residents claimed. This trash then prevents flow of water, making it stagnant and a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes
Citizen Says
The civic body should install CCTV cameras across the city to nab those polluting the streets. They must undertake this initiative in collaboration with RTO to identify even those citizens who simply fling trash from their vehicles.
If those dumping the garbage cannot be identified, the fines can be attached to their number plate — Nishad Sevekari | Resident of Warje
Official Says
We have decided to have vehicles parked at select locations so that people can throw their waste directly into the van, instead of on the roadside. We cannot keep staffers at the spot round the clock, but when there is someone, they also talk to those dumping waste to understand why they are doing so, in an effort to resolve their issue — Deepak Raut | HOD, Karvenagar-Warje Ward Office
DHOLE PATIL ROAD WARD
#24 total chronic spots under limits of the Dhole Patil Road ward office
#19 spots have been cleared, five still exist
#1 previously known chronic spot has been beautified
Unsegregated Trash Creates A Stink
Along with a few chronic spots, garden waste lying around on street corners is a common sight, especially in Koregaon Park.
On Dhole Patil Road, however, waste is largely mixed, which is a result of the innumerable hawkers and roadside eateries in the area. Residents said greater awareness and initiative from citizens will go a long way in resolving their garbage woes
Citizen Says
PMC staff is very cooperative as far as waste collection is concerned. However, they must be reminded and chronic spots need to be brought to their attention time and again.
What is missing is a proactive approach, which is why we see garbage everywhere — Manoj Phulphagar | Resident, Koregaon Park
Official Says
We cleared quite a few chronic spots that fall within the Dhole Patil Road ward's jurisdiction. We are also working on creating more awareness by talking to citizens and establishments in the area. The waste that gets thrown here is mostly mixed. Those who litter are fined when caught in the act — Tulshiram Sabale | Senior Health inspector, Dhole Patil Road Ward Office
NAGAR ROAD-WADGAON SHERI WARD
#131 total chronic spots identified by PMC
#37 chronic spots continue to exist
#94 spots claimed to have been cleaned and beautified
Eateries And Vendors Add To EyeSores
According to residents, eateries and roadside vendors are largely to be blamed for the garbage situation in Vimananagar and other nearby areas like Lohegaon and Wadgaonsheri.
While some locations have become chronic dumping spots because they are close to eateries, others like the one near Mhada colony are used by staffers to segregate waste and so many citizens choose to dump their waste there
Citizen Says
PMC officials actually do a good job in the area, are responsive and come to clean spots when called. However, there needs to be more vigilance from their end to put a stop to the practice of dumping.
Once people are fined, they will automatically think twice before dumping their waste — Raja Subramani | IT Professional
Official Says
We are regularly picking up garbage from Vimannagar. When our staffers notice someone dumping waste, they have been instructed to stop them, talk to them and tell them why they must not indulge in such practices. The staff also make them aware of the fines — Sanjay Pol | Deputy Engineer & HOD, Nagar Road-Wadgaon Sheri Ward Office
Additional Data
#928 are the total number of chronic spots across Pune Municipal Corporation limits.
Of these, the highest, 153, have been identified in Hadapsar-Mundhwa ward limits and lowest, four, under the Kothrud-Bavdhan ward limits. Of the 928 chronic spots, PMC data shows that 186 continue to exist and 742 have been cleared. A total of 237 previously-known chronic spots have been beautified
#5,743 is the total count of permanent staff on PMC payroll with the solid waste department. A total of 908 of the 5,743 are deployed under the Kasba-Vishrambaugwada ward office.
The lowest number of permanent staffers, 171, are under the Wanowrie-Ramtekdi ward office
#4,855 is the total number of contract employees in the department. The highest, 722, are deployed in the jurisdiction of the Nagar Road-Wadgaon Sheri ward office. Bhavani Peth ward office has 0 contract staffers
PMC Solid Waste Department HOD Says:
We have begun cleaning chronic garbage spots across PMC limits and have even started beautification in a bid to prevent citizens from throwing their trash there.
A total of 237 spots have been beautified as of March 31. Our efforts to minimise roadside dumping are on. We have deployed staff at some locations to catch those dumping waste and not only to make them more aware, but also fine them if necessary — Sandeep Kadam | Deputy Commissioner (Solid Waste Management Department), PMC
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