Kolkata: A week after the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) board of councillors was dissolved and an administrator took charge of the civic body, streets across Salt Lake have started to look cleaner. The civic authorities have been regularly collecting and disposing of the daily generated waste and cleaning the road sides. Earth movers are being used to collect the daily generated waste from the collection points. On Sunday, a stretch off the canal side road in AE Block — where a heap of garbage had piled up — was cleaned up.
Residents Praise the Change
“Heaps of waste, including plastic and abandoned household items, used to be dumped along the road side and on the dividers. The civic authorities always had an excuse, saying they had manpower shortage. How can the civic authorities clean up the places now? It is all about having the right intentions,” said AL Block resident Pabitra Biswas.
“What the civic body could not do in the last seven years, it has done in the last seven days,” said Krishnendu Chowdhury, a resident of CL Block.
“The condition of the roads, garbage disposal system and street lights had hit rock bottom. The green verge between the two parts of AE Block had turned into a mess. The two large garbage bins in front of the market used to always be overflowing. It was practically impossible to stand in front of the tea stall due to the stink. However, the way the civic authorities are working now, it seems that the problem of garbage disposal is to end very soon,” said AE Block resident Soma Ganguly.
Monsoon Preparations Underway
Ahead of monsoon, the authorities are now working on a war footing to clean the drainage lines to minimise waterlogging and check that the electric feeder boxes are safe so as to prevent electrocution. The authorities have introduced a 24x7 toll-free grievance cell number — 6292234126 — for residents seeking any civic assistance.
“It is to be ensured that the electric feeder boxes are safe to prevent electrocution during monsoon. Extensive cleaning of gully pits is also underway to prevent waterlogging as much as possible. Civic teams are being mobilised from early in the morning, and senior and borough-level officials are checking the work from 6 am to 2 pm,” a civic official said.
“We are optimistic that the new govt will bring a fresh start — swiftly clearing the trash, rubbish, and debris from the canal side between AL and DL blocks, and rebuilding the broken pavements that force pedestrians on to roads,” said Shayan Mitra Mustafi, secretary of Citizens’ Forum, Salt Lake.
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