Mumbai: BMC receiving 30 calls daily about open dumping of garbage

A pile of garbage near a bus stop at Dharavi on October 6. Pic/Ashish Raje

Despite the existence of detailed guidelines and special teams to deal with the open dumping of garbage and debris, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) still receives 25 to 30 complaints regarding the menace each day. In the first month since the launch of a dedicated helpline in June, the average number of daily complaints was 125.

After receiving instructions from Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, the civic body started a dedicated helpline to register garbage complaints in June. In the first 30 days, the corporation had received approximately 3,500 complaints. The number dropped after the rainy season started but messages about the piling of garbage continued to show up on social media. After Shinde raised the issue again on September 1, the BMC rolled out a special campaign.

The civic body assured citizens that ward officers and deputy municipal commissioners would make daily visits for two hours. A total of 449 additional workers - 429 from NGOs and 20 contractual workers - were appointed along with regular BMC workers as part of the drive. An additional 181 units of machinery - including 39 JCBs, 66 dumpers and 76 small closed vehicles - were also deployed.

However, the complaints keep coming in, mostly from large wards with slum pockets such as L ward, which comprises Kurla; followed by P North (Malad); K West (Andheri West, Jogeshwari West) and S ward (Bhandup). Though the number of complaints has dropped, these wards have remained at the top of the complaint list throughout the period.

An official from the solid waste management department stated, "We had instructed wards to identify five locations with regular complaints and address the issues accordingly. After our efforts, the number of complaints dropped drastically." During the initial 30 days till July 5, the civic body received a total of 3,570 complaints, averaging 128 daily, with 93 related to garbage and the rest concerning debris.

Based on an RTI query by Praja Foundation, 12,351 complaints were received in 2022 regarding solid waste management issues, mainly garbage not being collected through the BMC's central complaint registration system, resulting in an average of 33 daily cases last year.

12,351
No of solid waste complaints received in 2022