Garbage disposal at locals’ mercy

Statesman News Service

MALDA, 29 JULY: The Malda sub-divisional officer, Mr Prakah Pal, has asked the English Bazaar Municipality (EBM) to inform the local people of Kotwali gram panchayat about the Solid Waste Management (SWM) project, in regard to the dumping of garbage at Nimasari ~ a contentious area newly selected for the purpose.

The decision was taken at a meeting convened by the SDO, Mr Pal yesterday, in the presence of the EBM officials including the vice-chairman and Opposition leader, sabhapati of English Bazaar panchayat samiti, prodhan and Opposition leader of Kotwali gam panchayat, local MLA and the block development officer.

The EBM had selected a new plot of land at Nimasarai under Kotwali gram panchayat in English Bazaar and started dumping the garbage of Malda town there, before implementing the SWM project.

On Monday, local villagers blocked the road and stopped the dumping of garbage at the newly selected Nimasarai spot. Facing resistance from local residents of Chandan Park under Ward no 25 in the EBM area, where the EBM used to dump garbage, the civic body started garbage dumping at Nimasari in Kotwali gram panchayat area.

Owing to popular resistance at two places, the civic body was not in a position to clear the garbage since Monday.

As a result, the bad odour was spreading in English Bazaar town where the EBM could not clear the garbage dumped since Sunday.

Mr Narendranath Tiwari, chairman of the EBM, in face of the local resistance, had to seek administrative help to sort out the problem.

The vice chairman (VC) of the EBM Mr Dulal Sarkar said: “We need to convince the local people of Kotwali gram panchayat to allow the dumping of garbage there for the SWM project. We will have to inform them about the SWM project with the help of panchayat officials.”

“By this time we will have built the minimum infrastructure to begin the SWM project at Nimasarai,” Mr Sarkar said. According to the Malda SDO, Mr Prakash Pal, the English Bazaar BDO and sabhapati will help the civic body to talk to the panchayat members and local people who are agitating against the garbage dumping.

If the Kotwali panchayat can not manage the problem it would find another place for the SWM project.

“To clear garbage from places in English Bazaar Municipal areas we have identified another spot in Ward no 22, for temporarily dumping garbage,” said Mr Sarkar.