MGP stages flash protest against Civic Body’s inefficiency

Mysore/Mysuru: At the outset of the meeting, members of the Mysore Grahakara Parishat (MGP) staged an impromptu protest, displaying placards that accused the MCC of failing to effectively regulate plastic usage. This unexpected protest caught other attendees off-guard.

The protesters asserted that door-to-door garbage collection process is still not efficiently carried out. Additionally, MCC’s efforts to control plastic usage have been inadequate. Some individuals continue to dispose of waste on the roadsides, yet MCC has shown little response to these actions, allowing the issue to escalate, they alleged.

In response to these claims, Senior Health Officer of MCC, Dr. D.G. Nagaraj refuted the allegations, stating that the door-to-door garbage collection is being executed effectively, but the Civic Body is committed to implementing measures to enhance the system.

Shankar Rao, a representative of the CFTRI Layout Residents Association, proposed the closure of plastic manufacturing units. He argued that the confiscation of plastic items hasn’t yielded effective outcomes, even after raids on numerous shops and warehouses. Despite substantial expenditure on cleanliness, the results have not met expectations.

Arun Kumar from Srirampura recalled the directive of State Committee Chairman of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), Justice Subhash B. Adi to make Chamundi Hill entirely plastic-free by Dasara. Water bottles and plastic articles pose a threat to the Hill’s environment, necessitating strong regulatory actions for control, he said.

To address the menace, strict penalties should be imposed on users of plastic. Excessive waste generation within the Chamundeshwari Assembly Constituency presents a significant challenge. Other local bodies show minimal interest in waste collection in the city’s outskirts, leading to waste disposal along the Outer-Ring Road (ORR), a problem that remains unresolved. To tackle this, individuals with a genuine concern for cleanliness should be appointed as ‘Ambassadors’, he suggested.