Garbage crisis looms as truckers, contractors threaten strike

BENGALURU: Another garbage crisis is staring Bengaluru in the face, with truckers and contractors deciding to strike work from Saturday or Monday.

As part of the agitation, hundreds of garbage transporting vehicles, including compactor trucks and autorickshaw tippers of various sizes and shapes, are slated to be parked in and around the BBMP headquarters near Hudson Circle.
Around 80 garbage contractors run their business in the city with 5,000 auto tippers and more than 400 compactor trucks of various capacities. If the truckers and contractors stick to their strike threat, solid waste management in Bengaluru, which generates more than 4,000 tonnes of garbage daily, will be severely hit.
SN Balasubramani, general secretary, Bengaluru Mahanagara Swachate Lorry Malikara Mattu Guttigedarara Sangha (Bengaluru garbage truckers and contractors’ union), told TOI that BBMP officials are harassing them by making false allegations against them.
“Contractors are being falsely accused of indulging in creating bogus bills for vehicles deployed for collection and transportation of garbage. Officials have made statements before media that many our vehicles don’t even exist but bills are being raised for them. In order to come clean before the public and media, we have decided to bring out all vehicles we deploy as per the work order under which contractors function. The public can decide who is in the wrong,” he added.
“We are also being charged with opposing reforms like installation of GPS in vehicles which transport garbage. There is the issue of pending bills as well,” Balasubramani said.
He said that deputy chief minister G Parameshwara has convened a meeting of garbage contractors and civic officials on Thursday. “Irrespective of the outcome of the meeting, we are committed to parading our vehicles mainly because we want to come clean before the public,” he reiterated.
Sarfaraz Khan, joint commissioner, solid waste management, BBMP, said he has called for a meeting of the contractors before the meeting with the deputy CM. He said he is hopeful of ensuring that the garbage problem doesn’t escalate.
Box: Fake bills; no GPS: Palike
BBMP officials have stuck to their guns and said that garbage truckers and contractors are creating hurdles to the civic body’s efforts to bring in transparency in waste management. “During a recent check, we found there could be bogus billing for at least 1,000 non-existent auto tippers. Payments are being made for 5,000 tippers monthly. We have been paying for around 100 bogus compactor trucks. We have instructed drivers to at least install GPS in their phones so that we can track vehicular movement. But the direction is not being followed,” said an official.
Members of the contractors’ union refuted the allegation, saying the civic agency has not even fitted GPS devices in vehicles under its ownership. “We as service providers haven’t got any communication from BBMP to install GPS in our vehicles. It’s a drama. There is a lobby to buy new compactor trucks and phase out traditional contractors like us,” said a member.