Diwali Amid Garbage Heaps! 24 Hours After Sanitation Strike Ends, Residential Colonies Still Littered With Waste In Bhopal

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Even 24 hours after the strike was called off by sanitation workers, garbage heaps were seen in residential colonies. On Friday evening, sanitation workers had called off the strike after meeting with the Chief Minister.

Door-to-door garbage collection has resumed, but clearing the backlog of dumped garbage proved a major challenge for Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) during the festivals.

The accumulated waste continued to choke residential colonies across Bhopal on the eve of Diwali. Though the municipal workers resumed cleaning duties last night and early Saturday morning, the sheer volume of waste from the four-day strike created a massive clean-up backlog.

However, Mayor Malti Rai and Collector Priyank Mishra ordered the launch of a sanitation drive immediately from 10-number Market. But garbage was removed from main markets while residential colonies still had scattered garbage.

Even in posh areas like Arera Colony, Gulmohar, Trilanga, Shahpura, Bawadiyakalan and Old Bhopal, the situation remains the same. Besides, burning of dumped garbage continued and the scene is very common in Bhopal. Traders and residents burnt garbage.

Municipal commissioner Ram Prakash Ahirwar and mayor Malti Rai reviewed the situation of sanitation, water supply and street lights in the city on Diwali. They instructed officials to streamline basic amenities, which were disrupted due to the strike during the festivals.