Mysuru: With no respite from the stink of the garbage piled up enormously at the Excel Solid Waste Management Plant or Sewage Farm at Vidyaranyapuram, the residents of Vidyaranyapuram, J.P. Nagar, Kanakagiri, Gundu Rao Nagar, Vishveshwaranagar and surrounding areas are demanding the authorities to shift the waste management plant. Nearly two lakh tonnes of waste has been accumulated at the plant at present. 

In the vicinity of the Waste Treatment Plant are more than 24 apartment complexes housing about 2,000 flats with 9,000-odd residents. Added to that are about 20 schools and colleges with thousands of students and all of them continue to suffer the unbearable stench from the garbage accumulated at the plant, according to the residents.

The demand of the residents was placed before Mysuru District Minister V. Somanna who inspected the vexed Excel Solid Waste Management Plant this morning.

Others who accompanied Minister Somanna were Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha, Chamaraja MLA L. Nagendra, Mayor Pushpalatha Jagannath, Deputy Commissioner Abhiram G. Sankar, Mysuru City Corporation Commissioner Gurudatta Hegde and others. 

Interestingly, Krishnaraja MLA S.A. Ramdas, who had spearheaded many agitations against the smell emanating from the sewage plant and had made it an election issue, was conspicuous by his absence. All the VVIPs were wearing face masks during their visit as they could not bear the stench. 

Residents and schoolchildren alleged that the chemical spray to contain the stink was ineffective. Medical waste from many hospitals and nursing homes were being indiscriminately dumped at the treatment plant which should be actually incinerated at source. 

Hearing the pleas, the Minister formed a Committee on the spot, headed by the Deputy Commissioner. Other members of the Committee are MCC Commissioner, MCC Health Officers, MP, all four MLAs of Mysuru, Mayor and the Deputy Mayor. The Committee has been asked to submit a report by Nov. 25 on the ways and means to curtail the smell from the plant. The Committee has been asked to look into shifting the plant if none of the measures work. It will look into three-month, six-month and one-year plan to mitigate the sufferings of the people. 

Somanna also directed the MCC officials to strictly implement the ‘waste segregation at source’ immediately. “All household waste must be segregated at source from tomorrow and the proposal to set up waste plants near Rayanakerehundi and Kesare must be examined. There is no shortage of funds and the Government will release money if a proper and feasible plan is submitted,” he said. 

The Excel Treatment Plant was set up under JnNURM Project in 1996. Nearly 500 tonnes of solid waste is treated daily to produce compost. However, tonnes of untreated garbage go untreated, given that the city produces nearly 700-800 tonnes of waste. Residents said that the animal carcass from slaughter houses were dumped directly into the plant, leading to unbearable stench.