Movement of garbage trucks flayed

PUNE, Nov 4: Following the closure of the Kothrud garbage dump, the use of the Hadapsar garbage site as a transfer point by the Pune Muni...

PUNE, Nov 4: Following the closure of the Kothrud garbage dump, the use of the Hadapsar garbage site as a transfer point by the Pune Municipal Corporation PMC has become a bone of contention with residents of St Patrick8217;s Town up in arms over the movement of trucks through their area every night.

After the closure of the Kothrud dump, the Hadapsar site is under use as a transfer point by the PMC: Every night the garbage is collected and transferred to large containers so that they can be carried to and dumped at the new site at Uruli Devachi.

8220;The trucks keep plying through the streets all night long and are a nuisance,8221; said N C Mathur, one of the residents. A charge that is backed by S M Acharya, another resident and president of the Save India Association. 8220;Garbage is spilled all over the place as the garbage containers speed over the speed-breakers, and the noise is unbearable throughout the night. It is a major health hazard,8221; he pointed out. The residents are now demanding that the PMC come up with an alternate route. But the PMC officials firmly deny that the garbage site at Hadapsar is being used as a dumping ground.

8220;We are only using the site as a transfer centre,8221; said Dr P S Dhaigude, assistant health officer at the PMC. He asserts the garbage is being dumped at the Uruli Devachi site but it becomes too expensive to send the smaller trucks. Instead, the garbage is accumulated in a few big trucks and then transported to the new site.

But the residents allege that the PMC has built a wall around the area to turn it into a garbage dump. 8220;The wall was built so that the garbage did not spill outside the specified area,8221; said Dhaigude, quot;and we are not dumping anything there.8221; As regards the spilling of the garbage, Dhaigude said he had personally inspected the area. 8220;Garbage is not being spilled,8221; he said.

The site in question has been the focus of a tussle between the Hadapsar Industrial Association and according to Mathur, the association had also filed a litigation to prevent dumping.

Rajkumar Chordia, managing director of Pravin Masale pointed out that this was an ongoing trouble. His factory is right next to the dump and therefore he feels that it is a major health hazard. 8220;Our association has filed a case and we are arguing for its closure,8221; he said, but declined to comment further as the case was in court.

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Meanwhile, the St Patrick s Town residents have demanded that the containers follow an alternate route so that the cleanliness of the area was maintained.