Mindless garbage disposal brings woe to townspeople

Garbage cans haphazardly placed across Lalmonirhat town have become a nuisance for its residents.

Most of the 80 cans were placed on footpaths some six months ago, much to the inconvenience of commuters, locals told this paper.

The bins were never cleaned on a daily basis since their instalment, said the locals, while the mayor of the city said the situation was a consequence of the ongoing movement of the employees of municipalities. 

Several thousand employees of the municipalities from across the country are agitating for the third week in Dhaka demanding their salaries be paid from state funds.

Dayal Chandra Roy, who runs a tea stall on the Saptana Road in Lalmonirhat town, said his business had been down lately as customers hardly could stand at his place because of the foul smell oozing out of a garbage can placed right beside his stall.

“Commuters come across the cans every now and then while using the sidewalks. The overflowing bins have so many negative impacts on health and environment and are also an eyesore,” said Mobarak Hossain, a resident of Thana Road.

“The mayor or other officials do not feel the impact as they travel by cars but we have to walk by these bins,” said Mobarak, demanding the bins be managed duly to lessen the sufferings.

Sathira Akhter, a student of Lalmonirhat Girls’ High School, said one bin have been placed on a footpath besides her school building.

“The bin remains full all the time. We get the bad smell while sitting inside our classroom,” she told this correspondent.

Regarding the residents’ complaints, Fazlul Haque, an executive engineer of the Lalmonirhat municipality, said the bins were setup following the mayor’s order. “It was done to help the residents. The mayor’s decision is the final decision,” he said.

The official refused to make further comments on the situation.

When contacted, Lalmonirhat Municipality Mayor Reazul Islam Rintu said the town dwellers who were not using the bins properly. “They do not drop the wastes inside the bins and litter instead,” he said.

Regarding the claim that the bins were never cleaned regularly, he said, “This is a recent phenomenon. It is happening because the workers have gone on a strike.

“I, along with an engineer, will visit the spots and address the concerns as soon as the workers’ movement is over,” said the mayor.