Garbage on Pozhichalur main road eyesore to locals

CHENNAI: Residents, daily commuters, and motorists using Pozhichalur main road near Pallavaram in the suburban area face civic issues due to the unchecked piling and dumping of garbage. The main road connecting Kol Bazar is an eyesore to residents and a happening place for stray animals feasting on the waste.

Despite several complaints from the locals, no permanent action was taken for the garbage problem. There is no option for the people since there is only one garbage dumping place along the Pozhichalur main road.

“It’s not a problem for the people who walk along the dump yard alone. The motorists who use the stretch at night face several issues. Since cows and buffalos frequent the area to feast on garbage, the bikers and students on bicycles risk their lives, failing to catch sight of the cattle during the night hours,” said D Murali, a resident who stays along the main road.

He said though the Anakaputhur municipality officials are taking steps to remove the garbage, it was not on regular basis. “Sometimes the garbage gets stagnated for more than two to three days in a week,” he said adding “sometimes during holidays it will be there for more”.

However, a senior official from the Anakaputhur Municipality said the authorities were searching for another proper place along the main to place the garbage collecting boxes. He said as some locals throw liquor bottles in the night, the scattered glass pieces also pose a threat to the commuters.

“The garbage not only attracts cows and buffalos but also invites stray dogs, which chase the motorists in the night,” D Surya, an employee in a private company near Chennai airport, who often does night duty, said. He also complains that banned plastic bags filled with household waste often get stuck on bike wheels.

“During morning hours, the bikers, who come from Pallavaram to Pozhichalur main road find it difficult to give way when a bus or lorry overtakes them at the garbage dumped place,” he claimed.

The Anakaputhur Municipality official also said though the area has two big garbage collection units, locals still throw the waste on the road polluting the place indiscriminately.