Garbage collection has been affected in most parts of the city for the last three days as auto drivers and contractors renting out vehicles have struck work over non-payment of dues.
South, West, East, Mahadevapura and R.R. Nagar divisions of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike are the worst hit, with black spots re-emerging on the streets, sources said. City Mayor R. Sampath Raj told The Hindu that garbage collection had been affected but the matter would be set right by Monday.
However, a senior garbage contractor in the city, Balasubramanyam, while conceding that he had not been paid since December 2017, denied that contractors were on strike.
Senior BBMP officials said contractors — already seething over the implementation of direct payment to pourakarmikas — are trying to hit back at the civic body by not letting vehicles and drivers pick up garbage. Drivers are not in the ambit of the new direct payment system though the BBMP is still dependent on them.
“Like earlier instances when they chose to strike work during festivals to put pressure on the government, they are trying to create a garbage crisis in the city in the run-up to the Assembly elections,” an official said.
Sources said BBMP officials had recently approved a policy encouraging auto drivers, presently not in direct payment system, to enter into an agreement with the BBMP directly instead of going through contractors. If this is implemented, it will further reduce the role of contractors, eventually weeding them out of the system, officials said.
V. Ramprasad, SWM activist, said auto drivers and some pourakarmikas were also being misled by contractors. The contract with the BBMP clearly states that the contractors will manage garbage collection for six months in advance.
“Though it is true that their bills have not been cleared, it is still within the six-month timeframe, indicating that the contractors are trying to stage a crisis,” he said.
Mr. Sampath Raj said he had given specific instructions to clear pending bills of contractors and claimed that payment was being made from Saturday itself.
