Garbage has been overflowing onto busy South Delhi roads, obstructing traffic and creating unhygienic conditions for over a year now, even as the local civic body’s plan to revamp the collection system has failed to take off.
Collection of garbage in three out of the four zones of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) had been outsourced to private concessionaires for nine years, which expired in January 2014. The SDMC had planned to outsource collection in all four zones by issuing a tender with harsher terms aimed at improving sanitation services. However, a year-and-a-half after the previous contracts expired, the SDMC is yet to get new concessionaires, giving extensions to the existing ones.
In the meantime, residents across South Delhi have been complaining of garbage dumps ( dhalaos ) not being cleaned on time and trash accumulating on the streets consequently.
The two dhalaos on Press Enclave Road in Saket block half a carriageway during rush hour, slowing down traffic and leading to health concerns at the doorsteps of two major hospitals in the vicinity. The arterial road in Saket has three malls, Max Super Specialty Hospital, Saket City Hospital, and two dhalaos that cater to Saket, Khirki village and adjoining areas.
“It’s shocking how the garbage is always lying on the road. Not only is the movement of traffic getting hampered, it could lead to health issues as the garbage accumulates outside the hospitals as well,” said Dimple Singh, a Saket resident.
“What has happened to the Swachh Bharat campaign,” asked Ms. Singh, referring to the nationwide cleanliness drive launched last October.
The SDMC, which operates the garbage collection and disposal system, said it was trying its best to maintain cleanliness in the area. “The dhalaos get a lot of inflow from Khirki village, where there is no space for a dump. There is a shortage of space, if we get an alternative site we will make another dhalao . Otherwise, we are ensuring these dumps are cleared twice a day,” said SDMC spokesperson Mukesh Yadav.
South Delhi Mayor Subash Arya said the new contracts, which are now finally under process, will include stricter terms to ensure the concessionaires do their part.
“We will increase the number of trips and trucks in the contract. If a dhalao gets two truckloads of garbage, it will be cleared twice a day and so on,” said Mr. Arya.
Though all dhalaos are meant to be cleared at least once a day, residents have been complaining that the dumps are not being cleaned at all.
SDMC officials do admit that the situation is bad in areas such as Saket, Safdarjung, near IIT, Kotla and Defence Colony.
Resident of Greater Kailash-II and chairperson of the Federation of GK-II RWAs Chetan Sharma said the garbage dump in the area was cleared once in two or three days. “The situation is so bad that the garbage keeps piling up for two or three days. It becomes difficult to walk past the dump. This can be chalked up to the lethargic attitude of the SDMC,” said Mr. Sharma.
SDMC Leader of Opposition Farhad Suri, however, said it was more than “bad planning”. “There was a deliberate attempt to give the current concessionaires an extension. The contractors aren’t bothered about improving services,” said Mr. Suri.
