Foul smell, smoke from trash dump bother residents

Pimpri Chinchwad: Nearly one lakh residents of Nigdi Pradhikaran, Yamunanagar, Rupeenagar and areas in Talawade have to deal with foul smell, smoke and houseflies because of garbage dumped on an open plot by the Dehu Road Cantonment Board (DCB).
The smoke and flies also leads to health problems, the residents have said.
Though the DCB dumps the garbage on defence land, the open space is less than a kilometre away from the border between the DCB and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation limits.The area covered by the garbage has increased because the board has been disposing of the garbage at the plot for the past few years.
Sugandha Magdum, a homemaker from Talawade, said, "The wind carries plastic carry bags and bottles, waste paper and other lightweight objects from the garbage dump into our courtyards and houses. We have to clear this trash every day."
Vijaya More, another homemaker from the area, complained of the houseflies swarming over the decomposing garbage. "Children get sick due to the flies," she said.
Local resident Shubhangi Itkeli said the restaurant and food waste dumped on the plot attracts stray dogs.
"We cannot sleep at night due to their constant howling. Some people also dump dog carcasses here, which decompose and we have to deal with the foul smell," Itkeli added.
People also burn tyres, plastic and other garbage at night. "The smoke enters our homes, causing coughs and breathing problems," said Radhabai Shinde, another resident.
Local leaders have also complained about the issue, urging the civic administration to take action. Corporator Poornima Sonavane from Rupeenagar in Talawade said, "Around 25,000 to 30,000 people from my ward are affected.If the menace does not stop, Talawade residents will hold a rasta roko agitation at the Nigdi octroi post on Pune-Mumbai highway."
Corporator Tanaji Khade from Sector 22, Nigdi, said that around 30,000 people in his ward are suffering because of the houseflies and smoke.
Former mayor RS Kumar said The foul smell from the garbage depot affects residents of Sector 26 near Ganesh lake as well as Sector 25 and other areas in Nigdi when the winds blow in our direction. PCMC must take action to stop this menace permanently.
DCB officials have said that the garbage dumping has increased because of a rise in the population in the board's limits.
A DCB official said the board does not have its own land to set up its own garbage depot and has to use the defence land with the permission of defence authorities.
"We have instructed the contractor to segregate plastic and other recyclable waste from the garbage. He has also been instructed to and spray chemical solutions to address the foul smell. Some miscreants light fires, which cause problems to residents," the official said.