Saturday, May 30, 2026

Heaps of garbage greet residents of Hyderabad

Heaps of garbage dumped on roads near different transfer stations following expiry of contract of municipal trucks

By S. Sandeep Kumar

Updated On - 2 January 2021, 12:37 AM

Heaps of garbage greet residents of Hyderabad — Garbage dumped near Krishna Kanth Park, in Hyderabad on Friday — Photo: Anand Dharmana

Hyderabad: The New Year began on a stinky note for many colonies in the city with heaps of garbage dumped on the roads near different transfer stations on Friday. This was after municipal corporation trucks that were involved in shifting the waste from transfer stations to the dumpyard in Jawaharnagar went off the road due to expiry of their contract. As a result, heaps of garbage was strewn all over on the road near the Krishna Kant Park transfer station.

Apart from local residents, visitors at the park, who arrived to spend some quality time in the park, had to bear the unbearable stench and walk amidst unhygienic conditions. Motorists shuttling across Yousufguda and Kalyan Nagar too faced inconvenience in driving through the limited carriageway available. “We did not expect our New Year to commence on such a note. Since morning, lots of garbage is being dumped here,” said Anuradha, a resident, pointing to the pile of garbage.

There are 17 transfer stations across the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits and similar scenes were witnessed at different stations. With the holding capacity at a few stations turning full, Swacch autos dumped the waste on the roads near the stations.

Every day, nearly 6,000 metric tonnes of municipal solid waste is generated in the city and about 175 trucks are used by the municipal corporation to shift the waste from transfer stations to the dumpyard at Jawaharnagar.

Majority of these trucks are operated on hire basis, with the contract expiring on Thursday, a senior GHMC official said. The municipal corporation head office had to take a decision on utilising these trucks by extending their contract or entrust the entire task to Ramky Enviro Engineers Limited (REEL). In November, Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao had flagged off 55 advanced compactors for garbage collection and transportation.

REEL had informed that these vehicles were being introduced in the country for the first time. This is the first time such smart vehicles, including 20 cubic meter capacity Portable Self Compactors (PSCs) and 24 cubic meter capacity hermetically sealed waste containers, are being used for secured waste conveyance in India. These compactors are operating, officials informed.

When Telangana Today tried to contact GHMC Additional Commissioner (Health and Sanitation) B Santhosh to seek clarification on the issue, he did not respond.