Bengaluru: After footpath clearance drive, GBA to launch ‘Freedom from Waste’ campaign from August

Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda on Tuesday (July 14) announced that five companies under the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) will launch a ‘Freedom from Waste’ campaign to clear old waste, including garbage blackspots, across the city.

The campaign will follow the footpath clearing drive, which includes the removal of encroachments and abandoned vehicles. As of July 14, nearly 10,000 encroachments of various types by commercial establishments have been cleared.

waste cleaning

During a meeting with GBA officials, Mr. Gowda instructed officials to prepare a comprehensive plan for a month-long campaign in August to clear garbage, solid waste, construction debris, soil heaps, weeds and other waste. He also called for coordination with other departments to clean up old waste generated by development projects.

“Under the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML), around 22,732 tonnes of waste has been detected at 1,616 locations within the GBA area. A plan needs to be prepared to clear it,” he said.

Additionally, Mr. Gowda said property owners will be given time until August 15 to clear weeds, overgrown vegetation and waste from vacant areas. If the sites are not cleaned by the deadline, the relevant municipal authorities will undertake the cleaning and recover the cost by adding it to the property’s tax liability.

In order to prevent illegal dumping of construction and demolition debris, it will be mandatory to register all vehicles involved in this work and install GPS tracking devices.

He also instructed authorities to remove illegal hoardings and crack down on those who have permission to advertise themselves but violate the rules by using them for commercial purposes.

Improving property tax collection

The Minister asked the revenue authorities to identify properties outside the property tax network and bring them into the system. “Identify cases of underpayment of property tax, review assessments where necessary, and ensure that all properties within GBA jurisdiction are designated as Khatas and included in the system,” he said. He also suggested using data from government agencies to identify tax-evading properties and include them in the system.