Festivities leave tonnes of cracker waste on hyderabad city roads

Malkajgiri: The day after the revelry of Diwali, the roads of Malkajgiri are seen littered with the remains of crackers, leftover sweet and food items and Pooja material, even after the Supreme Court had banned the sale of crackers.

However, the sale of crackers did not stop, and so did the citizens from bursting crackers. While the city was engulfed in smog in the early hours on Monday, the garbage on the streets was also in abundance. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) collected over 48 metric tonnes of Diwali litter from different areas in Malkajgiri Zone on Monday.

Deputy Commissioner of Malkajgiri T Dashrath said, "We have added three vehicles to the existing 15 vehicles to clean up different areas. It may take one more day to clear all the Diwali litter." As part of a special initiative, the GHMC is cleaning up the areas post-Diwali.

Deepak, assistant engineer at Malkajgiri, said, "Last year, no need arose for any extra vehicles, but this year, we added three additional vehicles as the back up to clear Diwali litter across Malkajgiri. The same clean up will go on for the next seven days."

Deepak further added, "A total of 198 metric tonne garbage was lifted on Monday, of which 150 metric tonne was Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) and 48 metric tonne was Diwali litter. Littering on streets, temples, roads and around Diwali cracker stalls were collected."

Waste in Malkajgiri was also more than usual days due to the bursting of crackers. The GHMC workers began working earlier than their usual time.