The Observer Volume 19 Issue 7

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The Observer An IIJNM publication

Watch out, pickpockets are on the prowl; 100 theft cases registered | P 2

Vol 19, Issue 7

Website: http://www. theweeklyobserver.in

Yakshagana, Karnataka’s art form, gains popularity among children | P 3

It can be used at ATMs and business outlets Aarthi N

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Smart cards will make payments easier as they can be used multiple times at multiple places. | Credit: Aarthi N duced, the problem will be solved,” said a BMTC conductor who refused to give his name.

Sarika K, who travels on BMTC buses everyday, said: “It will help us commuters in various ways. We need not stand in long queues to get our monthly passes or tickets. If it can be used everywhere, then the mode of transaction will be a lot easier.”

Epaper:https://issuu.com/ theweeklyobserver/docs

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

BMTC and BMRCL will launch a Common Mobility Card soon oon, BMTC and BMRCL will together launch a Common Mobility Card (CMC) that can be used for Metro and bus travel and also at shopping malls and restaurants. It can be used like a debit or credit card.

“BMTC and BMRCL are working on a pilot project and will begin testing them soon. This Common Utility Card, or smart card, will make payments easier.

It can be used multiple times at multiple places. It does not require people to carry their debit or credit cards separately. These will be open loop cards which can be used anywhere,” BMTC PRO Deepak N informed The Observer.

“All ATMs and places like restaurants, petrol bunks, etc. will be equipped to read these cards. Every transaction will be accountable,” he added.

The card might bring some relief to BMTC conductors.

“It will make things easy for us as we won’t have to return change to passengers. Most of the people who travel in buses do not give us change, so if this card is intro-

@theweeklyobserver

Vinu Abraham D, an interior designer, said: “Visiting ATMs all the time is time-consuming.

ATMs are out of order most of time. The card will make transactions easier and keep us tensionfree when we step out.”

But not everybody will find it easy to use the card. “Older people and small vendors may find it difficult to use,” said Harish C,

who works at a finance firm.

Satya Sankaran, an urban mobility expert, welcomed the move.

“CMC is a good alternative to having so many cards. Why are BMRCL and BMTC not coming up with next-generation digitalisation which will work with phones? When Uber and Ola are app-based, why not public transport? They should not invest on cards; it is a 20-year- old technology. They should try to bring CMC in an app which can be used everywhere.”

Sanjeev V Dyamannavar, Transport Expert from The Praaja Raag Advocacy Group said: “If these cards are introduced, it will become easy for commuters to keep a track of their expenditure on their commute as the data will be stored in the system which will be accessible to them anytime. Though these cards will benefit people, there will be limitations as well.

These limitations should be studied by the implementing agencies.”

In 2017, BMTC announced smart cards for its commuters and tested the same in buses in Majestic and a few other places.

They had implemented the smart card system in a few parts of the city, but as it didn’t work, BMTC stopped issuing them.

Students use 3.5 L closed loopcards, P3

News briefs Education rankings Kerala and Rajasthan top school education rankings by scoring 76.6% and 72.9% respectively in NITI Aayog's ranking. Uttar Pradesh IS placed at the bottom.

Oil prices may spike Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammad bin Salman has warned that oil prices could spoke to “unimaginably high numbers” if the world doesn’t come together to deter Iran. He said he prefers a political solution to a military one.

Uber head moves to Sequoia Amit Jain, former Asia Pacific head of app-based cab aggregator Uber, has joined venture capital firm Sequoia Capital India as managing director.

Anu Rani enters finals Anu Rani became the first ever Indian to reach the finals with 62.43m mark in the women’s javelin in World Athletics Championships in Doha.

Latest iteration of Starship Elon Musk, billionaire entrepreneur, has unveiled the latest iteration of his space company’s newly assembled Starship.

Dasara exhibition contract Contract for the Dasara Exhibition this year has been awarded to M/s Fun World Resorts India Private Ltd.,Bengaluru for Rs 8.25 crore.

Man Utd settles for a draw Manchester United draws against Arsenal with final score 1-1.

Dog owners avoid getting licences for their pets Adilin Beatrice C

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espite various campaigns and awareness programmes conducted by BBMP and organizations for dogs, not many Bengalureans are keen on getting licences for their pets.

“I have an Indie dog which I adopted one year ago from an organization. We got a licence for him from the Jayanagar BBMP office. But after that, we didn’t renew it. There is no particular reason for us not to renew it; but renewing it every year is difficult,” Rohini, volunteer with an NGO, informed The Observer.

Aruna N, who owns an 11-year-

old Cocker Spaniel named Toffy, said: “It is not difficult to renew as they conduct campaigns at a lot of places. Recently I heard about a campaign in Cubbon Park. But I’m not really up to it.”

Shivaprakash, a security guard who takes care of three-year-old Bono, a Golden Retriever, shared: “I don’t think the owner got him a licence. I never took him to apply or renew it. They don’t have time for this. We got a collar that has the owner’s number on it... in case if he gets lost.”

As per Section 344 of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, keeping and feeding animals and birds without the permission

Three-year-old Bono, a Golden Retriever. | Credit: Adilin Beatrice C

of the municipal commissioner or the officer concerned is strictly prohibited. BBMP is still working on making the rule mandatory.

“Dog owners neglect to get licences for their pets because it is not compulsory. The health condition and vaccination status are checked while licensing. It ensures that the dog is safe and human-friendly. We provide them with a licence book and a badge (with the owner's name and address) to be attached to the dog's collar after checking all this,” said Dr Manjunath Shinde, assistant director of animal husbandry, BBMP. Renew licence every year, P3

CITY

2 Citizen’s voice Customs clearance Delays in customs clearance of cargo at Bengaluru’s international airport are making importers furious. They are not notified or provided with any tracking details of the consignments. Packages awaiting clearance remain in terminus storage for more than a week.

Ishika Dangayach Shortage of drugs Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendras in rural Bangalore lack generic medicines and sanitary napkins, inconveniencing people living in rural areas. They are forced to buy expensive medicines from other pharmacies.

Archita Srivastava Buses lack CCTVs Most BMTC buses lack CCTV cameras despite an investment of Rs 3.4 crore. Since the introduction of 400 Volvo and minibuses, which have inbuilt CCTV cameras, the total number of buses with cameras has risen to 900. But the rest are still without cameras.

Swalpi Bajpai New jam spot on ORR Rerouted 500 series BMTC buses stop on Outer Ring Road in front of Mahadevpura now, causing chaos and blocking vehicles coming down the flyover.

Bhavesh Purohit

The Observer Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Watch out, pickpockets are on the prowl around Bengaluru Women being used to steal people’s wallets Chirag Dutta

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ore than 100 cases of cash theft have been registered all over Karnataka in the past two months. Most of these cases of pickpocketing have been filed in Bengaluru. Despite best efforts of police to stop them, people still fall victim to it.

Sheik Naveen, an SBI employee, recently became a victim of pickpocketing. His back pocket was slit with a sharp blade, and the wallet was picked without him realizing. The thief tried multiple times to slit his bag open, but fortunately for the victim, it was made of good leather.

According to people in the vicinity of the crime, the victim was robbed earlier but he realized it only when he reached for his wallet to pay for a glass of juice he had bought.

When The Observer approached

Increase in the rate of pickpocketing around the city | Credit: Pexels Sheik Naveen, he said: “I am not worried about the money; what bothers me is that the small-time crook has all my important documents like Aadhaar card, bike documents, PAN card and ATM cards. I think he will take the money and discard the rest along with my wallet. I was not carrying more than Rs 3,000. Now, I have to file a police complaint and hope that they find my wallet.”

When The Observer asked inspector K. Srinivas of the Upparpet police station about the incident, he said: “In most cases, if the culprit is not caught within an hour or two, recovering the lost item becomes very difficult.

We have alerted all police units in the area. Our colleagues will use their sources and try their best to locate the thief, but we cannot say anything for sure now. In cases

Garbage spills out as bins on MGRd, its adjacent areas are inadequate Things become worse when the skies open

Ankita Mukherjee

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edestrians on M.G. Road and its adjacent roads have to deal with an unpleasant situation: The few garbage bins overflow.

Savita Bhatt, who resides near M.G. Road, informed The Observer: “When the garbage overflows, it gets messy. Sometimes, BBMP doesn’t collect it for two or three days. But plastic bins are better as they can store more garbage than the small steel ones.

People don’t put garbage properly, creating a mess on roads.”

Maihtreyi Bulgannawar, who was walking on Church Street, said: “The most irritating thing about these open dustbins is the stinking smell that comes out of them. I feel so disgusted when these smell reaches my nose. ” Anita Jacob, a pedestrian, said: “I am happy to see the implementation of these bins. But as they are open, people dump garbage carelessly and it falls down, creating a mess on the footpath. People should be more careful about it.”

Thousands of people walk on Mahatma Gandhi Road, Church Street and other neighbouring roads every day; crowds increase

Spilling of garbage creating a mess | Credit: Ankita Mukherjee mainly on weekends.

The Observer found that these dustbins are mostly open. Bins with lids are only in front of apartments. Some of the open dustbins were broken on the top.

When the bins fill up, residents pack waste in black plastic bags and place them in front of the bins, taking up space of the footpath. Street vendors occupy much

of the footpath, leaving little space for people to walk.

When it rains, water mixes with garbage, creating a foul scene.

M Lokesh, superintending engineer, solid waste management, BBMP, said the plastic bins were installed in March 2018. “We installed dustbins with the lids, but they were stolen. We don’t know

how. But, yes, we plan to replace those broken and open dustbins with bins that have lids.”

Umashankar Arun, an environmentalist said: “These dustbins were installed by BBMP for temporary purposes. If we do not educate society, segregation of waste will not be done properly.

Both the government and citizens should take the initiative to keep surroundings clean. The waste that is being generated by shops should be dumped in their bins.”

“People smoke, drink, eat and throw the waste material outside the bins; they don’t even notice the bins. They have the audacity to throw it on streets despite knowing it is hazardous. These people call themselves as educated people,”he added.

BBMP’s solid waste management rules prescribe penalties for offenders: •Failure to comply with any lawful directions issued by the commissioner to ensure cleanliness and hygiene of road, bus station, railway station, street, playground, park and other premises of public utility – Rs 100/ for first time, Rs.200 for second and subsequent offence.

•Irregular deposit of rubbish or filth or any solid waste – Rs 100 for first time, Rs 200 for second and subsequent offences.

•Allowing filth to flow in streets – Rs 100 for first time, Rs 200 will be fined for second and subsequent offences. ankita.m@iijnm.org

like these, thieves keep on changing their locations; they avoid staying at one place for too long as it increases the chances of them getting caught.”

Pashupathi, a data handler at the Chamarajpet police station, said: “In early September, the police had busted a group of criminals. These crooks are coming up with new ideas to avoid getting caught. They use women to run pickpocketing rackets. Women are much less suspected when it comes to crimes like these. In the case of isolated areas, these robbers directly attack the victim, at times victims sustain serious injuries.”

M Shivakumar, who owns a juice shop beside the KSR railway station, said: “It is very unusual for pickpocketing to happen in an area like this. The area has a strong number of police officials patrolling, and getting away from them is difficult. I think the man was robbed somewhere else. He did not realize it earlier. He was shocked when I asked him to pay for the juice. That is when he realized he had been robbed.” chirag.d@iijnm.org

Around the city •ACN- International Conference on Environment, Agriculture and Biotechnology from 22nd September to 20th October till midnight in RK Hegde Nagar, Bengaluru.

•NI Automotive Forum India on 19th October in Sarjapur Outer Ring Rd, Marathahalli Village, Munnekollal, Bengaluru.

•The Echoing Chamber (Winner of the Toto Award for Creative Writing 2019) on Saturday 5th October 2019, 6.30 p.m. in The British Council, Prestige Takt, Bengaluru.

•ACN- International Conference on Environment, Agriculture and Biotechnology from 22nd September to 20th October till midnight in RK Hegde Nagar, Bengaluru.

•NI Automotive Forum India on 19th October in Sarjapur Outer Ring Rd, Marathahalli Village, Munnekollal, Bengaluru.

•The Echoing Chamber on Saturday 5th October 2019, 6.30 p.m.

Weather Forecast:Mostly Sunny Maximum temperature: 29 degree celsius Minimum temperature: 20 degree celsius Humidity: 60% Precipitation: 80%

CITY

The Observer Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Yakshagana has become popular among children Many young people watch and learn it Aarthi N

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akshagana, a traditional theatre form of Karnataka, is gaining popularity among children and youths. Children are keen on watching shows held at various places in Bengaluru.

“Children and youngsters are very much interested in this art form. They also learn it with utmost interest…. If children learn it from from a young age, they can learn much, Mythili K.S., founder and director of the Cappella School of Art, informed The Observer.

The Observer found young children watching a Yakshagana show with interest. “I like the show because the dancers are wearing colourful costumes,” said Yashika K, a class 4 student at Café Down the Alley.

C. Krishnamurthy, father of Yashika, said: “This art form is very famous in Karnataka. We want our children to know about these traditional art forms. In the era of mobiles and laptops, they should also know about tradition.”

Yakshagana artistes have played a big role in popularizing it.“I got into this art form because of my mother. She is a great per-

Students use 3.5 L close loop cards Continued from page 1

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here are two types of smart cards: Open-loop cards and closed-Loop cards. BMTC first introduced open-loop cards for passengers, but after its failure, it introduced closed-loop cards for students. Around 3.5 lakh students use these cards.

These cards that are used in BMTC buses are done by recharging the card and swiping it in the Electronic Ticketing Machines (ETM).

In March 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a ‘One Nation One Card’ or National Common Mobility Card (NCMC), which can be used as a common card for transport like bus, Metro, suburban railway. It can be used to pay at retail malls, tolls and in parking lots. NCMC will be merged with RuPay, allowing people to even withdraw cash using it. To be implemented on a pilot basis from November 2019, it will be available to everybody in 2020. aarthi.n@iijnm.org

Yakshagana workshops are conducted in city. | Courtesy: Suchitra former of Yakshagana. I started learning from at a very young age, and I enjoy performing it,” Srinidhi Holla, a popular Yakshagana artiste in Bengaluru, shared.

Jayaram Raipuria, a Yakshagana artist and teacher, said artists have the freedom to change and enact anything. “Over the years, this art has gained interest among people. Many come to watch it.”

Tickets for Yakshagana shows in Bengaluru are sold in large numbers. They are priced between Rs 200 and Rs 500.Various workshops are conducted in the city to teach the art form to young students.

Through Yakshagana, artistes portray not only the dance form

but also talk about societal issues.

Artistes take about an hour to get ready. The costumes and jewellery worn by Yakshagana artistes used to be heavy. Earlier, the works on costumes were made of wood, but now they are made of fibre.

“It takes minimum of one hour to get ready before our performance. We do not get help from anyone and do everything on our own. There are a lot of accessories for this art form. The future of Yakshagana will be a mix of both traditional and modern forms,” said Manoj Bhat, another artiste who performs and teaches.

“Though it is a traditional form, today’s artists are trying to mix fusion with this art form to make it more interesting to audiences.

In this generation, where young children are addicted to mobiles, such art forms give them a gist of old stories which they can remember easily,” Mythili said.

Yakshagana is noted for its music, colourful costumes, dance movements, expressions and extempore dialogues. It has two main variations: Moodalapaya, the eastern form which is popular in north Karnataka; and Paduvalapaya, the western form which is also known as coastal Yakshagana. Of the two, coastal Yakshagana is more popular. It is more refined when compared to other styles. Paduvalapaya is performed in the coastal districts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Uttara Kannada. aarthi.n@iijnm.org

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Pet licence should be renewed every year Continued from page 1

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he BBMP is working towards making dog licences compulsory. Every year, 1,500-2,000 dogs are licensed, he added.

During pet licensing, dog owners are asked to bring the original, and a copy, of their dog’s vaccination card along with a pet parent’s identity and address proof. The licence expires on March 31 every year. So the pet owners are supposed to renew it every year. BBMP charges Rs 110 for the process.

Bangalore Pets and Animal Licensing, an online platform, provides free microchips for dogs along with licence. Punith Kumar, founder of the organization, said: “Pet owners neglect acquiring licences due to lack of accessibility. BBMP tells the pet owners to get licences at the nearby BBMP office, whereas if the nearby office is just a ward office, it doesn’t have an animal husbandry representative. Pet owners need to go to the nearby BBMP zone office to get or renew a licence. There are objections from animal activists to the pet owners paying Rs 110 for the licensing.”

“If a licensed dog gets lost, the animal husbandry (Department) and organizations take initiatives to find it. Even if a pet dog is found on the street with a microchip, we scan it and try to find the owner. If that is not possible, then the dog gets a new parent.”

If a licensed pet dog is found on the streets, it is taken to the Municipal Animal Shelter. These

Garbage thrown near playground poses health problem for children Aman Bhardwaj

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he children of Kadarenahalli, Banashankari, are unhappy. The reason: garbage is dumped in front of their playground. People feel uneasy walking by the ground.

A month ago, residents of the locality, near the Deve Gowda fuel station, wrote to the BBMP ex-ecutive engineer in charge of solid waste management to have the place cleaned twice a day.

They are still awaiting action.

“As children go there to play daily, they fall sick because of the garbage thrown nearby. The stink and effluent from the garbage has caused rashes, breathing problems and infections to my children,” said Rajni, parent of a child who plays in the ground frequently.

Suresh, who owns a bakery near the playground, said: “This place smells very bad. No one wants to stand here or pass this way.” Wet waste smells very bad after some time. His business is affected because customers avoid visiting his bakery.

BBMP to resolve the problem as soon possible as it is causing illness. | Credit: Aman Bhardwaj Aallu, an autorickshaw driver, said: “People don’t want to cross this lane, so they prefer to take an-other way to cross it. We changed our auto parking place from that lane because passengers don’t want to go there.”

Dr Ramesh Kumar, a general physician who has a clinic in Kadarenahalli, said: “There is an

increase in infections and diseases among children and old people in the locality as their immune system is not strong compared to others.”

Akshay Heblikar, director of Eco-Watch, an NGO that works for environment protection, said: “The stink and effluent from garbage will cause air pollution that not just affects the locality but the whole environment. The respective department have to take serious decision to resolve the problem as soon as possible.”

P. Vishwanath, chief engineer (solid waste management), BBMP, said: “I’m aware of the problem. That is why I’m passing a rule to clean the area twice a day as children go there to play.”

The BBMP plans to shift the dumping spot from near the playground.

The ward member of the locality who didn’t want to be named said: “I talked to the BBMP about the garbage and stink problems.

The BBMP told that it will resolve the problem as soon possible as it is causing health issues.” aman.b@iijnm.org

dogs are kept longer in shelters and are less likely to be euthanized. The shelter tries its best to find the dog owner and return it.

Cubbon Park Canines (CPC), a Facebook-based organization for dogs, along with BBMP, conducts pet dog-licensing drives at Cubbon Park on selected Sundays. So far, they have conducted five such drives. CPC provides free medical check-ups and subsidized rabies vaccination on campaign days.

Bangalore Pets and Animal Licensing says that due to the resistance from animal rights activists, the online application form for pet licensing is unavailable.

In June 2018, BBMP proposed a new rule on dogs. It made dog collars with a microchip and embedded GPS compulsory. It said people living in apartments were allowed to have only one dog, while owners of independent houses could own up to three dogs; if an unlicensed dog showed sign of rabies, it can be treated as a stray dog and euthanized. It proposed a fine of Rs 1,000 for violation of the rule.

The measure was taken back following criticism from activists and dog owners. adilin.b@iijnm.org

Twitterati talk B.H.Anil Kumar,IAS @BBMPCOMM I call upon food delivery apps @swiggy_in @ZomatoIN @UberEats_IND to switch to environment-friendly packaging & desist use of banned plastics.

The same applies to restaurants that deliver food in #Bengaluru. #BBMPCOMM #plasticfree #BBMP

Team Observer Editor: Ankita Mukerjee Copy editors: Aarthi N, Adilin Beatrice C, Ankita Mukerjee, Aman Bhardwaj, Chirag Dutta Page Layout: Aarthi N, Adilin Beatrice C, Aman Bhardwaj, Chirag Dutta Photo editor: Ankita Mukerjee Supplements: Apoorva G.S, Shivani Mishra

Urban

The Observer Tuesday, October 1, 2019

SUPPLEMENT

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Trees Need Room to Breathe Urban design must give pride of place to the trees that line our roads, says Apoorva G.S

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rees on Bengaluru’s footpaths are being entombed in concrete. Confined to a space barely larger than their trunks, and surrounded by paving, trees have no room to grow as their access to water and minerals is severely restricted.

Worse, their roots are often cut or damaged when the pavement is dug up to lay pipes and cables or during road repair.

The National Green Tribunal’s guidelines prescribe a minimum unrestricted space of 6x6 feet around the base of the tree.

To enable water to reach the roots, the Urban Greening guidelines issued by the Ministry of Urban Development recommends that pervious material has to be used for tiling of pavements around the trees.

Says Bengaluru-based environmentalist Uma Shankar Rao, “To grow and stay healthy, trees grow their roots horizontally up to 4-7 times their radius. Hence poured concrete and cut roots while constructing footpaths restrict their growth. ‘Structural soils’ which are porous and also

Once Bengaluru’s tree cover made it an air conditioned city |Credit: Apoorva G.S

provide compaction are designed for the sidewalks, enabling roots to go deep beneath instead of spanning out.”

S. Somshekar, chief engineer, road infrastructure at the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), explains, “There are space constraints. The forest department plants the trees and we build the footpaths. Sometimes because of miscommunication with the forest department, we are not instructed as to how much

space is to be left around which tree. These were built a few years ago and we do not have any new projects or funds related to fixing these spaces as of now.”

Says Stephen. R, a private contractor at ABR Constructions, “The road infrastructure plans are given by our clients and we work according to that. We don’t receive any guidelines regarding BBMP footpath constructions.”

Research shows that the concrete encasing the base of the

trees throttles their root systems weakens them and makes trees vulnerable to high winds and storms. It also weakens the trunk and makes it prone to termite attack, leading to the possibility of the tree snapping from the mid.

Nitin Shetty, a civil engineer suggests alternative methods to make our sidewalks eco-friendly.

“While traditional paving results in cracks and raises the surface when roots grow, alternative methods like rubber pavers, composite plastic pavers, bricks, or pervious concrete help the roots grow deeper and allow water and air to pass through the surface.”

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esin-Bound Permeable Paving is a new, scientifically proven method for safe tree planting on streets. A mixture of aggregate, stones, and resin is used to pave pedestrian walks and to create ‘Resin Bound Tree Pits’. With these, there are no open tree grates which allow weed growth and space for litter.

They also eliminate the risk of pedestrians tripping.

Adds Reshma E.K, assistant

professor of transportation system engineering the Dayanand Sagar College, “Trees can also be saved using the offset sidewalks method’ where the sidewalk is rerouted around an existing large tree, giving the tree roots more space to grow and reduce future tree-sidewalk conflicts.”

“Whenever we come across these concrete pavement tiles around the base of the trees, we make sure that they are removed then and there itself,” says Sri. Cholarajappa, deputy conservator of forests, BBMP. “But we don’t keep a count on the number of trees that have been harmed by these concrete tiles.”

The trees around us are vital to our well-being. Not only are they are aesthetically pleasing but they clean the air by absorbing carbon dioxide, provide shelter to birds, small animals and insects, and help regulate the temperature. Once Bengaluru’s elevation and tree cover made it a naturally ‘air conditioned city’.

But its steady loss of tree cover has made it just another hot, dry and dusty city of the Deccan.

Hazards Hiding in Plain Sight The collapse of Bengaluru’s waste-management system has grave implications for public health, writes Shivani Mishra

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engaluru is witnessing an unprecedented spike in the number of dengue cases.

Since the beginning of the year, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike (BBMP) has recorded 5,352 cases and hundreds of new cases are being registered in government and private hospitals every day. This is ten-fold increase over the incidence of dengue in 2018.

The usual explanation offered for such a spurt in cases is the rainy season and the resulting pools of stagnant water that allows mosquitoes to breed. But the residents of JP Nagar in south Bengaluru says that at least in their area, the cause is the uncleared garbage.

Divya Shukla, a resident of Nandini Garden Apartments says JP Nagar has many empty plots that have become unauthorized garbage dumps, a problem residents have been struggling with this over the past few years.

There have been several cases of dengue reported from JP Nagar, about 10-15 from Nandini Garden itself. Her son was affected by it and she’s convinced the garbage heaps are the principal

Bengaluru’s waste is spreading onto its streets|Credit: Apoorva G.S

cause for what happened to him.

When it rains, she says, the water soaks through the piles of rotting garbage and flows onto the road, which doesn’t easily drain. They become a constant source of water-borne disease.

But since these vacant lots turned dumps become no-go areas, water is allowed to accumulate there and mosquitoes breed in the stagnant water and they spread dengue.

The residents blame the BBMP saying there is no system of regular door-to-door garbage collection in the area. Even when the BBMP garbage collection vehicle comes, they aren’t alerted and often the truck leaves empty.

So, residents are forced to fend for themselves and usually fid vacant lots to throw their garbage in and that piles up and cause problems for everyone.

If this isn’t problematic

enough, since these garbage mounds are never cleared, people set them. Noxious fumes envelop the neighbourhood and add to the air pollution, another offence that goes un-monitored by the BBMP. The BBMP by-laws on solid waste management clearly state, “The service agency responsible for collecting garbage should announce its arrival either by blowing a whistle or through a loudspeaker. The BBMP will also specify a day for door-to-door collection of bulky waste and horticulture and garden waste, as per the draft by-laws. BBMP will ensure door-to-door or point-topoint collection of e-waste on a payment basis, at least once every two weeks.”

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Somashekhar, the municipal corporator for the area, says that the BBMP garbage collecting vehicle comes every day to collect wet waste while dry waste is collected only on Tuesdays and Fridays. He also claims they alert residents to the service but people don’t follow the rules laid down by the BBMP for segregating waste and the safe disposal of garbage.

N S Ramakanth, an environmentalist, says there are alternatives and suggest ways in which local communities can handle uncollected garbage and prevent the risk of disease. He says if the garbage van doesn’t collect waste regularly, people should segregate the waste and compost the wet waste. “Put it in a bucket and cover it with leaves and microbes will decompose it; the process of decomposition will take around 67 days,” he says. “It’ll slowly get decomposed and all the harmful effects will be taken away. So, there is no need to throw garbage anywhere.”

Even if the BBMP isn’t convinced of the connection between uncleared garbage and the outbreak of dengue across the city, there’s little doubt that stinking piles of rotten garbage in residential areas are a health hazard. It makes the conditon perfectly suitable for mosquito breeding. Till the municipal authorities create a leakproof system of waste collection and disposal, it will be largely the responsibility of citizens to keep their surroundings clean and to safely dispose of the garbage they produce.