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Bengaluru: GBA plans mandating GPS for debris transport vehicles to tackle illegal dumping
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According to GBA data, nearly 22,732 tonnes of debris have been identified within GBA limits. | As the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) gears up to launch the Just Clean Bengaluru (JCB) initiative, part of the Freedom from Waste campaign to remove inert debris from the streets, it will also introduce a new system to monitor vehicles transporting silt and construction waste.On Thursday, Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda pointed out that even if the GBA clears all the debris from the streets, it will reappear, as the root cause of the problem lies in the absence of a system to monitor debris dumping. Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda during a press meet in Bengaluru on Thursday. | He also said the matter would be discussed with the Traffic Police and the Transport Department.“We already have four empanelled vendors to whom construction and demolition (C&D) debris must be handed over, at a cost of ₹760 per tonne,” he said. In addition, he has already instructed the police to book vehicles found dumping waste on the streets.Month-long campaignMr. Gowda said the Freedom from Waste campaign will begin on August 1 and continue for a month. During the drive, the focus will be exclusively on legacy waste, including mud, C&D waste, discarded pipes, electricity poles, stones, weeds, and similar bulky material that has accumulated along roadsides, footpaths, public places, and vacant sites.Corporation Debris locations Debris quantity (tonnes)North Corporation 3193,714South Corporation 3342,605East Corporation 2286,950West Corporation 4207,958Central Corporation 3151,505Total1,61622,732“Blackspots created by household waste will be taken up in a subsequent phase, and not during this drive,” Mr. Gowda clarified.He added that a large number of vacant sites across the city have accumulated soil, waste, and overgrown vegetation, causing considerable inconvenience to citizens. The government has received hundreds of complaints from citizens regarding such sites.Owners of vacant sites where waste has accumulated must clear it by August 15. Failing this, the GBA will undertake the cleaning itself, and the cost will be added to the property tax. He noted that the amount may also attract interest.West has highest debrisAccording to GBA data, nearly 22,732 tonnes of debris have been identified within GBA limits. Mr. Gowda, however, said the total quantity of debris is likely to be well over one lakh tonnes, based on his estimate.The data show that Bengaluru West City Corporation has the highest number of debris locations, with 420 sites containing 7,958 tonnes of debris. It is followed by Bengaluru East City Corporation, with 228 locations and 6,950 tonnes of debris; Bengaluru North City Corporation, with 319 locations and 3,714 tonnes; Bengaluru South City Corporation, with 334 locations and 2,605 tonnes; and Central City Corporation, with 315 locations containing 1,505 tonnes.K.R. Puram constituency alone has accumulated a whopping 6,282 tonnes of debris, followed by Rajarajeshwari Nagar with 2,943 tonnes. A GBA source said that most of these locations are on the fringes of the city. Published - July 30, 2026 06:52 pm IST
Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan | D. Satheesan concerning the marshalling of foreign funds for rehabilitating flood victims in his constituency in Paravoor, Ernakulam, when he was the Leader of the Opposition in 2019. Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala told reporters that the previous Left Democratic Front (LDF) government’s case against Mr. Satheesan was “politically motivated.”He said the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has found no legal grounds to prosecute Mr. Satheesan. He said back-to-back inquiries by two VACB directors had “revealed no Vigilance angle” in the case. The previous LDF government had ordered an anti-corruption Inquiry predicated on Mr. Satheesan’s 2019 visit to the United Kingdom at the behest of an Ernakulam-based charitable foundation to raise funds for rebuilding flood-damaged houses and distributing sewing machines to displaced families in Paravoor. Mr. Chennithala, quoting the latest VACB report, said Mr. Satheesan had no role in the handling and disbursal of the funds that financed the Punarjani Project. The charitable society, which he identified as Manappad Foundation, a registered entity under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), had transacted through legal banking channels, with the transactions audited and reflected in the non-profit organisation’s financial records and other mandatory filings. “Moreover, Mr. Satheesan did not handle the funds or interfere in their utilisation at any point in time”, Mr. Chennithala said. CM a victim of political witch hunt: ChennithalaMr. Chennithala slammed the previous LDF government’s attempt to hand over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), despite there being no evidence of wrongdoing. He said Mr. Satheesan was the “victim of a political witch hunt” launched by the previous government against the United Democratic Front (UDF), which was then in Opposition. The issue had come to the forefront of public discourse in the run-up to the 2026 Assembly elections. Seven years after the initiation of the preliminary inquiry, the Vigilance indicated possible offences under the FCRA Act, 2010. According to officials, the VACB did not recommend a CBI inquiry, but merely noted that the CBI was the competent agency to investigate violations of the Central Act which regulates foreign contributions to entities in the country. They said the VACB had told the previous government that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, not the State government, had jurisdiction over the matter, contrary to widespread assumption. Consequently, the previous LDF dispensation relied on the VACB’s report, which underscored that the State government’s consent was not a prerequisite for the CBI to investigate the accusations against Mr. Satheesan. The VACB had also noted that suspected FCRA violations fall under the exclusive purview of the Central government.As Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Satheesan had accused the LDF of attempting to foist false charges on him to divert attention from the conviction of LDF Independent legislator and former Transport Minister Antony Raju for tampering with evidence in a narcotics case. Mr. Satheesan had alleged that the LDF had in 2021 similarly attempted to alter the arc of the political narrative at the hustings by referring baseless sexual assault charges against a galaxy of Congress leaders, including former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, in the run-up to the Assembly polls. Published - July 30, 2026 11:55 am IST
Cadaver dogs deployed during search operations for the lone missing person at the debris slip-hit site at Kalladi in Wayanad on July 11, 2026. | The deceased was identified as Bikram Singh Rana, a project manager from Himachal Pradesh.Rana’s body was recovered on the sixth day of the search during extensive operations in Zone II. It was found in an area where iron debris had accumulated following the disaster.Officials said that with the recovery of his body, all missing people had now been accounted for after the massive debris slip struck near the entrance to the under-construction Wayanad twin-tunnel road project on July 7.After his relatives identified the body, it was shifted to the Vythiri Taluk Hospital for postmortem examination.Following the procedure, it will be shifted to the Kozhikode Government Medical College Hospital for embalming before being repatriated to his native place. Published - July 12, 2026 01:55 pm IST
Rescue operations continue at the site of the debris slip in Wayanad on Wednesday (July 8, 2026) morning. At least three persons were killed and five are reportedly still missing following the incident on Tuesday. | Published - July 08, 2026 10:51 am IST
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