Sir,

I wish to draw the urgent attention of the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) towards a long-neglected civic issue that has turned into both a nuisance and a health hazard. For the past six months and more, the drainage manhole at CFTRI Layout, 1st Main, 6th Cross, has been overflowing continuously.

The unbearable stench, coupled with the stagnant sewage, poses not only an inconvenience but also a very real threat of disease outbreak.

With Dasara festivities now underway and the city decked up in lights and decorations, this negligence stands out as a glaring contradiction. What pride can the citizens of Mysuru take in the city’s grandeur when basic sanitation is left in such a pitiable state?

Repeated complaints have only been met with excuses — the work is “approved” but “funds are not released.” Such explanations are of little consolation to residents who continue to suffer often. While lakhs are being spent to showcase Mysuru’s beauty to visitors, the same administration turns a blind eye to the stinking reality in its                 own neighbourhoods.

Visitors to my home during this festive season will go back with disappointment and disbelief, questioning how Mysuru still figures among India’s “cleanest cities.” Instead of being impressed by the Dasara celebrations, they will carry back unpleasant memories of overflowing drains and official apathy.

It is high time MCC, the local politicians, concerned officers realise that true civic pride does not lie in ornamental lighting or temporary beautification, but in providing citizens with the dignity of clean and liveable surroundings. As residents, we continue to live in hope that someday we will have a Mysuru that is not only celebrated during Dasara but respected year-round for its basic civic sense.

— A Concerned Citizen, CFTRI Layout , 22.9.2025

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