Littering bank officer chased, fined Rs 5,000 at Chintamani

Chintamani: The Chintamani city municipal council (CMC) has imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on a bank officer caught dumping garbage on the roadside while riding a two-wheeler.The incident took place Friday morning when CMC commissioner GN Chalapathi was on a routine inspection near Ooty Tank on the outskirts of Chintamani. He noticed a man throw a bag containing household waste onto the roadside from his two-wheeler.According to civic officials, the man attempted to flee after spotting the commissioner and the municipal staff. However, Chalapathi chased him and intercepted him a short distance away. He was later identified as Sharath, a resident of Gundappa lane in Chintamani, and an officer at a nationalised bank.When questioned, Sharath reportedly admitted that he had been disposing of garbage at the same spot regularly.Chalapathi said Sharath confessed to the offence, assured officials that he would not repeat it, and paid the fine on the spot.The commissioner said the civic body has intensified efforts to curb indiscriminate garbage dumping and the use of banned plastic items. Last month, the CMC imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on a trader found selling and stocking prohibited plastic carry bags. The trader’s licence was also cancelled.Chintamani’s civic authorities had earlier drawn attention for adopting unusual methods to tackle littering. In Oct last year, municipal workers dumped garbage outside the house of a repeat offender after warnings against throwing waste on streets allegedly went unheeded.