BBMP assures to begin work on projects in Mittaganahalli and Kannur villages affected by waste disposal

Following protests by residents of Mittaganahalli and Kannur villages over dumping the city’s waste in the Mittaganahalli quarry pit, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will soon issue tenders and work orders and begin work on rural development projects worth ₹500 crore in these areas, Chief Civic Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath said on Monday.

Following protests by residents of Mittaganahalli and Kannur villages over dumping the city’s waste in the Mittaganahalli quarry pit, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will soon issue tenders and work orders and begin work on rural development projects worth ₹500 crore in these areas, Chief Civic Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath said on Monday.

The funds were allocated for these areas in the last Budget and works are yet to be taken up, sources said. This comes days after Bengaluru Development Minister D.K. Shivakumar claimed he was being blackmailed by some MLAs over dumping yards in their constituencies and were demanding ₹800 crore for their constituencies. 

A key challenge at the Mittaganahalli landfill has been the accumulation of leachate — a contaminated liquid that results from decomposing waste. A staggering 275 crore litres of leachate have built up over time, posing severe environmental hazard.

“To tackle this, a tender has been issued for leachate treatment, and the issue is expected to be resolved over the next three to four years. At present, two treatment plants — one with 100 KLD (kilolitres per day) capacity and another with a 25 KLD capacity —are operational. Plans are under way to establish a 2,000 KLD plant to process the leachate effectively. The estimated cost of this initiative is around ₹474 crore,” Mr. Giri Nath said.

He claimed that with these assurances and measures, the concerns of the villagers in these areas had been addressed and the crisis “resolved”, with waste dumping operations resuming as usual.

“The protests in Mittaganahalli and Kannur stemmed from conflicts between local residents and contractors over improper waste disposal practices. These issues have been mostly resolved, leading to the resumption of garbage collection and disposal operations. Currently, waste is being disposed of at night in these areas, but measures are being taken to ensure daytime disposal as well. The Chief Executive Officer of the district panchayat will visit the affected areas to address any concerns and streamline the disposal process further,” he said.