Bengaluru: Marshals deployed by the BBMP to prevent people from dumping garbage in public places and open areas have been effective. But they marshals are helpless when it comes to preventing people from setting garbage on fire.
They are not equipped to fight the fire and still have no powers to penalise such miscreants. Now, they only have powers to penalise offenders dumping garbage.
A senior officer from the solid waste department in BBMP said, “It is being discussed at every meeting, as garbage burning is one of the biggest menaces in the city that is polluting the air. It is difficult for the marshals to prevent people from setting garbage on fire. Garbage piles on fire have become a common sight and they need to be contained quickly and with a firm hand.”
He said, “We have chalked out a few ideas that will help marshals in stopping miscreants from setting fire to garbage. The marshals can click pictures of the place where the garbage is set on fire which will help the authorities to keep an eye on the spot. Also, if the miscreants are caught, the marshals can take down their details and inform the zone level officials, who can in turn inform the police and file a case under criminal sections.”
A marshal, who did not want to be named, told Deccan Chronicle, “It is a difficult task, as people get aggressive when we stop them from dumping garbage or set it on fire. But we will ensure that action is taken against them, as our priority is to keep the city clean. We want more powers so that we can stop garbage being set on fire.”
He said, "We have seen people, especially those in residential areas, gathering all the waste strewn in front of their houses, like paper, dry leaves and more, sweeping it to one corner and setting it on fire. When we ask them not to, they tell us that they don’t have an option as the BBMP does not clean their area.”
