At an underground garbage bin in Sector 6, Panchkula, on Thursday. (Jaipal Singh) At an underground garbage bin in Sector 6, Panchkula, on Thursday. (Jaipal Singh) EIGHT UNDERGROUND waste bins placed at six locations in the city recently have transformed former rubbish dumps into neat spots with no visible signs of garbage, yet Panchkula residents have been complaining about them. The bins, divided into two compartments, one for wet waste and another for dry waste, cost Rs 70 lakh, and have been installed in sectors 20, 15, 12, 8, 9 and 6. The system is part of the smart city concept. The waterproof five-foot-deep bins have around 1,100-litre capacity each and are usually cleaned by a hydraulic machine once in two days. The area around the bins has been raised above road level and tiled, making them visible. MC Executive Officer Jarnail Singh said, “We have received representation from Sector 6 Residents Welfare Association demanding that the underground waste bins installed near Topiary Park in Sector 6 be shifted. We are looking for a fresh site to install the bins. But in Sector 15, where we installed a pair of bins near HUDA Colony, the Market Association wants another set of underground bins near the market.” Jeevan Aggarwal, President of Sector 6 Residents Welfare Association, said, “Sector 7 residents had rejected the advice of MC officials to install underground bins in their sector before launching this project in May this year. Now, we have also made a representation before MC officials to shift these underground bins from Sector 6. The bins are installed near a public park and it is difficult to walk as they generate stink. We want the work of waste disposal to be handed over to RWA. Our association was the first in Panchkula which deployed sanitation workers to collect door-to-door garbage at its own level.” Where the Sector 6 underground bins are located used to be a permanent mound of garbage that used to lie rotting and stinking, with cows grazing on it and dogs and people foraging in it for left-over food, but apparently, people seem to prefer that to the cleaner look of the underground bins. An MC officer said, “Nobody wants to allow these bins to be installed in residential areas despite the fact that this system can work successfully in residential areas, too. People argued that if sanitation workers go on strike, these bins will also spill over with garbage.” Chief Sanitary Inspector Madan Lal said, “The main features of these bins are that street cattle cannot assemble near these bins because the waste remains underground. Also, during the rains, there is no chance of water entering these bins.” SK Nayyar of Sector 15, President of Citizens Welfare Association, Panchkula, said, “The height of these bins is so short that sometimes people fail to notice them. The authorities should identify the locations for the installation of these bins after conducting a survey at the ground level. Our market association has demanded that these bins be shifted near the Sector 15 market.” For all the latest Chandigarh News, download Indian Express App

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