Sir,

Looking at this picture, which is typical of the area, one is left wondering: Is Hebbal First Stage, Ward No. 1, a garbage dump site?

Otherwise, why is there no action from the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) in clearing the garbage that is left unattended for days and worse still, no action to prevent garbage-throwing by certain unscrupulous people?

This is despite repeated reminders about this ugly menace, both to the concerned office and in this very column earlier.

There are several dump sites in this Ward, created by some irresponsible residents who deem it fit to dump garbage wherever they find some space, without considering it their responsibility to hand it over to MCC’s door-to-door garbage collection vehicle.

This is probably ‘encouraged’ by the local authorities, who look the other way when it comes to taking preventive measures such as identifying these garbage-bugs and slapping fines on them, or deploying a few Pourakarmikas to keep vigil near such sites, rather than merely asking them to remove piles of this dangerous refuse, often with their bare hands.

The problem has reached a truly unpleasant and even dangerous level, with residents living in proximity to these unhygienic dumps avoiding walking and other activities, unable to bear the stench emanating from knee-deep garbage. Will they have to pay a price when some communicable disease or other pestilence spreads due to this menace? Or will the authorities act before it is too late?

An easy reckoning here: The city of Indore in Madhya Pradesh, now rated as the cleanest city in India, is presently reeling under a tragedy with several deaths and scores hospitalised due to contaminated drinking water supply — a situation arising purely from official apathy.

Will Mysuru, too, which was once the cleanest city and still figures among the cleanest on some parameters, one day wake up to an air-borne or other communicable disease caused by its garbage menace?

I request the MCC Commissioner, Health Department and Pollution Control Board to take note of this menace and prevent the area from sliding further down the ‘garbage drain.’ It is a fundamental right of we residents to live in clean and healthy surroundings. I hope the authorities concerned will spare no effort to ensure the same.

– Shivaram Nayak, Hebbal, 2.1.2026

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