By IANS,
New Delhi : Social activist Anna Hazare’s rallying call for the nation to clean up its act has left behind piles of garbage at Delhi’s Ramlila ground.
Shortly after the 74-year-old broke his fast Sunday, and the tens of thousands who had congregated there over the last 10 days dispersed, civic workers were left staring at plastic pouches and waste food among other garbage.
More than 140 metric tonnes of waste was generated on a daily basis at the ground, according to the Delhi Waste Management Private limited (DWMPL).
“The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has outsourced waste management to us,” DWMPL employee Dharmendra Kumar told IANS. “Our eight vans have carried more than 140 tonnes of garbage everyday.”
DWMPL expects to dispose of more through Sunday, now that the curtains have fallen on the show. “We expect more waste today because of the food items that voluntary organisations will be dumping today,” Kumar said.
The organised efforts of DWMPL apart, rag pickers have also become active, retrieving anything of value they can.
A police posse keeps a close watch.
Since Aug 19, the ground has been the site of services such as mobile toilet vans, water carriers of the Delhi Jal Board, and medical and food supplies.
“In the initial days, slush was our main concern. Later there was waste generated because of food, plastic water sachets, a lot of Anna caps and pamphlets,” cleaning inspector Heera Dayal said.
“The next booking starts Sep 1,” Dayal said. “And the ground needs to be cleaned two days in advance.”
There is much to do in little time