Due to irregular clearance of garbage, many lanes and roads in Chitlapakkam are beginning to resemble mini dumping grounds.
On many stretches, garbage lies piled up for over two weeks.
P. Vishwanathan, convener, Chitlapakkam Residents Association Coordination Committee, says, “The conservancy staff who collect the garbage from houses do not visit the locality every day. Due to a fear of dengue, residents are averse to the idea of keeping the trash at home till the conservancy staff lands on their doorstep to collect it. So, they throw the garbage onto the roads. As there are only a few bins, many residents dump garbage in vacant plots. Besides this, motorists taking the stretch fling waste on the roads.” “Mounds of garbage on vacant land invite mosquitoes and cattle. Even when a conservancy staff collects the garbage, he burns it instead of disposing of it responsibly in the manner he is expected to. We face several health problems including irritation of eyes and dry cough due to burning of garbage. Moreover, constant dumping of garbage attracts stray dogs too,” L. Sivagami, a resident, said.
“Residents of houses on any cul de sac are the worst-affected as the conservancy staff ignore these streets most of the time,” says P. Ravindran, a resident. Several complaints to the Chitlapakkam Selection Grade Town Panchayat have gone in vain. Efforts to contact the authorities proved futile.