Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, April 16: Residents of ward number 1, 2, 37, 38 and 39 had a nightmarish experience Thursday after sanitation workers of a private firm engaged by Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), Ramky Environ Solutions, went on strike.
Solid waste lay uncollected in many areas, including Prasanti Vihar, KIIT hostel, Nayapalli, Patia, 120 Battalion, Sastri Nagar, Sikharchandi, Mundasahi, Kasturba Women’s College, TCS, Info City, Nayapalli village and Mamtaj Ali Road because of the stir. “There is chaos in our locality with mountains of trash emanating foul stench. BMC and Ramky have done nothing to redress the issue,” said a Sikharchandi resident, Santosh Acharya.
A Nayapalli resident Shipra Mohanty said a large part of her locality is flooded with solid waste as workers have stopped collecting trash.
Sanitation services have been privatised in 57 wards, with Ramky Environ Solutions responsible for maintaining cleanliness in 15 wards. BMC has 10 wards under its jurisdiction.
The Orissa head of Ramky Environ Solutions, C Sreenivasan, refused to comment on the issue. After learning about the incident, Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena asked BMC’s officials to inspect the affected wards and other wards managed by Ramky. Sources said Jena got infuriated over officials’ inaction and reprimanded them for lethargy.
BMC deputy secretary Srimant Mishra inspected ward 27 and assistant commissioner Dipti Rani Sahoo visited ward 37 to assess the ground reality. Mishra said the standard of cleanliness in ward 27 was unsatisfactory.
BMC additional commissioner D Brundha said she had been receiving complaints against Ramky for the past two days about the lack of cleanliness and asked subordinate officials to look into issue.
“Yes there are complaints against Ramky and we are taking concerted efforts to resolve the problem. BMC may slap a showcause notice on the firm for failing to provide adequate services,” the additional commissioner remarked.
Jena told the residents that BMC has asked the firm to ensure that the sanitation personnel resume work at the earliest and maintain proper cleanliness. “I am personally monitoring the situation to resolve the issue and ensure cleanliness,” he said.