Aurangabad: Eight months have passed since the civic administration started bringing in unsegregated waste at a compound in Central Naka but very little has been done to clear the mounds of garbage that is attracting dogs and keeping residents and shopkeepers in unease.Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) started dumping waste at Central Naka in February at a time it faced backlash from residents in Naregaon for indiscriminate dumping. Over the months, the compound, which houses the office of the local body tax (LBT), the ward office, parking for garbage trucks and dry waste processing shed, accumulated over 2,000 tonnes of waste.As mixed waste started coming in from zone 3 on a daily basis till July, mounds of garbage cropped up at the site which even started spilling over to the neighbouring cremation and burial grounds.Amid rising health concerns, the dumping was stopped three months ago and the civic body started lifting waste from the site but still the site is far from being free of waste. In a bid to avert public outrage, AMC has installed tall sheds around the site.Incidentally, the civic administration signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Mahatma Gandhi Mission (MGM), NGO Knowledge Links and Marathwada Environment Care Cluster (MECC) to set up an eco-park at the site in a three-phased manner.Paritosh Pathak from Knowledge Links said the site had 4,000 metric tonnes of waste when the three organisations started work in July. “Our first milestone was making the site odour free and free from flies. Marking the completion of the first milestone, a tea party had been organised at the site that was attended by the municipal commissioner on August 15,” said Pathak.As part of the second phase which is currently on, the waste at the site is being processed and segregated. In the final phase, the site would be developed into an eco-park, said Pathak.With the consultancy of the organisations, AMC was treating the remaining waste with bioprocess using organic material from Bhawalkar Earthworm Research Institute (BERI), said Pravin Deshmukh from MGM.However, the problems of the locals are far from getting resolved. Shaikh Gulab, a vendor who has his setup near the site said, “We have been tolerating this unbearable stench for several months.” Mohammed Rehan Shaikh, a resident of Altamash Colony near Central Naka, said, “The garbage trucks carrying fresh waste are parked in the compound.”Incharge zone officer Mukund Kulkarni said that the processing was on and that the waste would be cleared in another 15 days.

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