Protest At Mandur Gets Fiery, Villagers Block Garbage ...
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Sep 1, 2012 - Uploaded by Tv9 Karnataka
TV9 News: Protest At MGive us clean air, not tax sop: Mandur villagers
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safe air|Mandur villagers
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BANGALORE: We just want clean and safe air and water, chorus Mandur villagers.
Residents of this village, 40 km from Bangalore, are not enthused by
the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) announcement that they
will be given a 50% rebate in property tax.
Mandur, which has been bearing the brunt of thousands of tonnes of garbage generated by Bangaloreans and dumped in their midst, doesn't come under BBMP limits. Yet during the recent budget, the Palike announced the 50% property tax rebate for those residing within 1 km of the landfill. It has sent a proposal to the government to direct Mandur gram panchayat to provide property tax rebate to the targeted beneficiaries.
But a visit to Mandur by a TOI team on Tuesday revealed the bigger irony -not many families seem to be living within 1 km of the landfill. The villagers alleged that the rebate offer only smacked of cynicism given that their very existence is under threat.
Nalina, a villager, said the tax rebate won't help villagers maintain good health. Parents are spending money for medical expenses of children who are falling ill frequently due to the stink emanating from the landfill.
Admitting that the garbage dump ensured that the rot crept into every sphere of the villagers' lives, Nalina said: "Even if we don't pay tax for a few consecutive years, we pay it in lumpsum."
Water tastes bitter here:
Mandur has a population of around 2,200 people. "We are capable of paying the property tax, but we need good drinking water. The garbage dump has contaminated the ground water," said Ansuyamma, another villager. "The water from borewells and open wells here now taste bitter. Our children fall ill frequently," she rued.
With water in wells and tube wells unfit for consumption, the gram panchayat supplies drinking water to villagers once a week through tankers.
Couple Muniyamma and Munikondappa pointed out that people can't even sleep at night as the dump spews toxic gases, especially when it rains. "We don't want discount on property tax. We need a healthy life," Muniyamma asserted.
Water purifiers for villages
As the water available here is not fit for drinking, the Mandur GP will soon be installing water purifiers with reverse osmosis technology in each of its 12 villages. A Veere Gowda, panchayat development officer, said the project will start within a few days as the fluoride content is high in borewell water in the area. Work on installing purifiers will be completed within a few months.
The water purifiers will be set up in a 13 ft x 13 ft site and has the capacity to purify 1,000 litres of water per hour. Villagers will get 100 litres of purified water after inserting a Rs 5 coin in the purifying machine and it will provide 100 litres of water. Each purifier installation costs Rs 7 lakh.
Mandur, which has been bearing the brunt of thousands of tonnes of garbage generated by Bangaloreans and dumped in their midst, doesn't come under BBMP limits. Yet during the recent budget, the Palike announced the 50% property tax rebate for those residing within 1 km of the landfill. It has sent a proposal to the government to direct Mandur gram panchayat to provide property tax rebate to the targeted beneficiaries.
But a visit to Mandur by a TOI team on Tuesday revealed the bigger irony -not many families seem to be living within 1 km of the landfill. The villagers alleged that the rebate offer only smacked of cynicism given that their very existence is under threat.
Nalina, a villager, said the tax rebate won't help villagers maintain good health. Parents are spending money for medical expenses of children who are falling ill frequently due to the stink emanating from the landfill.
Admitting that the garbage dump ensured that the rot crept into every sphere of the villagers' lives, Nalina said: "Even if we don't pay tax for a few consecutive years, we pay it in lumpsum."
Water tastes bitter here:
Mandur has a population of around 2,200 people. "We are capable of paying the property tax, but we need good drinking water. The garbage dump has contaminated the ground water," said Ansuyamma, another villager. "The water from borewells and open wells here now taste bitter. Our children fall ill frequently," she rued.
With water in wells and tube wells unfit for consumption, the gram panchayat supplies drinking water to villagers once a week through tankers.
Couple Muniyamma and Munikondappa pointed out that people can't even sleep at night as the dump spews toxic gases, especially when it rains. "We don't want discount on property tax. We need a healthy life," Muniyamma asserted.
Water purifiers for villages
As the water available here is not fit for drinking, the Mandur GP will soon be installing water purifiers with reverse osmosis technology in each of its 12 villages. A Veere Gowda, panchayat development officer, said the project will start within a few days as the fluoride content is high in borewell water in the area. Work on installing purifiers will be completed within a few months.
The water purifiers will be set up in a 13 ft x 13 ft site and has the capacity to purify 1,000 litres of water per hour. Villagers will get 100 litres of purified water after inserting a Rs 5 coin in the purifying machine and it will provide 100 litres of water. Each purifier installation costs Rs 7 lakh.
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