PMC checking garbage to identify & fine litterers from discarded documents

In its quest to prevent disposal of garbage in public places and promote cleanliness, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has come up with a novel method to catch and fine litterbugs. This involves rummaging the trash for documents that ultimately betray the identity of the person responsible for littering. Interestingly, the Kothrud-Bavdhan zonal office has managed to track down and penalise as many as 35 individuals in this manner.

Sandeep Kadam, head of the solid waste management department, said, “This proactive initiative aligns with the ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ and ‘Swachh Survekshan’ campaign currently underway in ward number 12 (Mayur Colony-Dahanukar Colony) under the auspices of the Kothrud-Bavdhan regional office. The campaign specifically targets those who indiscriminately dispose of garbage in public areas, and on roads and footpaths.”

“We have instructed all employees of the solid waste management department in the respective wards to carry out these exercises to prevent dumping of garbage in public places. We have also placed CCTVs at the chronic spots. However, due to insufficient light, we cannot identify the litterers and most of the people are throwing garbage in abandoned places where we cannot place CCTVs. It is true that we should use technology in a smart city like Pune. But sometimes technology does not work,” Kadam said.

Dedicated teams have been formed in three wards: Bavdhan-Kothrud (ward number 10), Rambaug Colony-Shivtirthnagar (ward number 11), and Mayur Colony-Dahanukar Colony (ward number 12). These teams comprise a health inspector, mukadam, and three supporting staff members.

Vaijinath Gaikwad, mukadam, said, “We start our duty at 6.45 am and take rounds of the area under our jurisdiction. When we spot garbage on the road, footpath or open places, we check it and try to find documents to establish the address/contact numbers of the litterer. Most of the times, we find old electricity bills, mobile bills, payment slips etc. We have identified around 35 litterers in this manner and fined them.”

“Most of the people are IT professionals who are not present at home when waste-pickers visit their homes to collect garbage. Most of them are outsiders living on rent. We click photos of the garbage as evidence to show them. After showing the evidence, people have paid fines of ₹500 to ₹1,000 per person,” Gaikwad said.

The teams have so far collected up to ₹50,700 in fines. Health inspectors Karan Kumbhar and Sachin Lohkare; and mukadams Vaijinath Gaikwad and Anna Dhavre have been actively involved in this endeavour.

Civic activist Vivek Velankar said, “It is a wastage of manpower. Due to lack of manpower, the PMC installed CCTVs and now, instead of using the CCTVs, it is deploying such outdated methods to find the litterers. Even the police are using CCTV footage to identify culprits but the PMC is checking garbage to identify litterers…”