BENGALURU: Pourakarmikas have been directed to clear Deepavali festival garbage on priority and not to set fire to cracker waste.
BBMP Joint Commissioner (Health) Sarfaraz Khan told Deccan Chronicle that clearing garbage has been a challenge to the BBMP because of continuous rains and festivities.
Though the BBMP had identified common places and grounds to burst crackers to prevent littering and for the safety of those celebrating Diwali, there has been a lukewarm response to the initiative, he said.
Considering the religious sentiments, banning bursting of crackers is not easy. However, creating awareness will help reduce bursting of crackers.
Already, some schools have taken up awareness programmes and it may have helped to some extent, he said.
Any festival generates at least 25-30 per cent additional garbage, both wet and dry, and Diwali was no exception. Pourakarmikas have been told to collect cracker waste and dump it at landfills. Because of recent rains, it was difficult to send waste to landfills, and this has hampered collection and clearance of waste. Since the Sun is shining bright, clearing garbage will not be a problem and all the accumulated garbage will be cleared in three days, he said.
