This story is from May 19, 2015

Children clear up garbage dump

When a vacant plot in a north Bengaluru turned into a garbage dump, it took a band of kids to take the matter into their own hands and clear up the mess.
Children clear up garbage dump
BENGALURU: When a vacant plot in a north Bengaluru turned into a garbage dump, it took a band of kids to take the matter into their own hands and clear up the mess. While this may well embody the spirit of Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, the children face a perennial problem as the more garbage they remove, the more it piles up.
The 4,000 sqft plot sits in the middle of Atmananda Colony, RT Nagar, north Bengaluru.
The civic agency never bothered to remove the trash that would pile up on it. Intervention of elders too was of little use. A BBMP board on the plot even described it as a drain, exposing the importance the agency gave to the problem.
As the garbage mound grew, the area reeked of stench and colonies of mosquitoes swarmed the area. That's when a group of 10-12 children decided enough was enough. They personally cleaned up the area on May 13. They collected the garbage in one corner and called the BBMP, which sent trucks to lift the trash. But the children had the shock of their lives the next morning when they saw the garbage heaps back on the plot.
Kiran Kumar, 15, said, "People from nearby areas come in their vehicles after 10pm and throw their waste before speeding away. There is no regular collection of garbage in nearby areas as well."
Wary that all their labour would go down the drain, the children haven't given up. Two of them take turns every day and shoo away those who come to dump the garbage on the sly.
"We knew we had to show determination. Two years ago, our elders had volunteered and spent Rs 2 lakh to get the garbage cleared from this plot. They even put up two boards that read 'Garbage disposal is prohibited'. But within no time the boards were razed," says Nitish Hegde, 15.
The children are aghast that an image of Lord Ganesha they had kept at the plot too had failed to deter those dumping the garbage on the sly. - Disha Sanghvi
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