Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (SP)

Udupi, Oct 20: The initiative undertaken by Udupi zilla panchayat under the Swachh Bharat Mission (rural) to identify garbage black spots under which garbage heaps, particularly by the side of the roads, bus stand, riverside etc has got good response. So far, over 150 black spots in the district which were identified, have been destroyed.

Till now, people had passed on information to WhatsApp No. 9483330564 about the presence of black spots in 55 places. Out of the, 42 are located in rural areas falling under the zilla panchayat jurisdiction. 40 among them have been cleared in full. The municipality has been asked to clean the garbage black spots located within the urban area.

The gram panchayats on their own had identified over 100 black spots. They too have been cleaned up and in most of these places, activities like planting of trees, CCTV installation, hanging of banners, display boards etc have been undertaken. In gram panchayats like Koteshwar, Kodibettu, Bommarabettu etc, apart from destroying the black spots, some of them have been converted into flower gardens and given an artistic touch.

There has been very good public response for the programme of identifying spots where garbage is thrown. The task of imposing fine on those who dispose of garbage and getting the area cleaned through them is also going on at a brisk pace. People who threw waste near the graveyard in Siddapur gram panchayat have been identified and fined Rs 1,000. Rs 2,000 fine was levied in Sanoor gram panchayat and Rs 2,000 more in Bada gram panchayat limits. In Kodibettu gram panchayat, people who threw the waste were identified and they were made to clean up the mess. In Alevoor gram panchayat, those who threw garbage by the roadside were found, made to clean the place, and fine of Rs 2,000 was also imposed.

In the coming days, it is planned to give prizes to people who provide photos of either the people pouring the garbage or the vehicles which dispose of the waste, and the providers of photos and location information of such places are proposed to be rewarded if they send the information to WhatsApp No. 9483330564. Moreover, the information about the informants will be kept a secret. Dr Naveen Bhat, chief executive officer of the zilla panchayat here, said that black spot clearance drive is a continuous process and requested the people to continue to provide information about the garbage black spots through the said number and make the campaign a success and help in making the district garbage-free.