Tourists to Darjeeling, too, will have to abide by garbage dumping rules

EOI, DARJEELING, MAY 27, 2024 : The civic body in Darjeeling on Monday formed a committee to keep vigil on people dumping their garbage in areas outside those which had been allocated for the dumping of garbage at the stipulated time. Violations may result in penalty on the defaulters. 

This step by the Darjeeling Municipality has been taken because some residents of Darjeeling are in the habit of throwing their garbage throughout the day. The conservancy department staff collect wastes and garbage on a daily basis from residential houses and shops, but only at a stipulated time. .

Darjeeling Municipality, conservancy department In-charge Nitesh Gurung said: “An order was issued by the Municipality chairman today that as per the meeting held on May 3 there will be three teams made for the purpose of inspection of all hotels, restaurants and areas in the municipal area. These three teams have been made to check if the waste and garbage being disposed of by them are being done properly or not. 

They will also check if the local people are disposing garbage at the proper time or not and in the proper place. 

”“We have made a schedule for the hotels, restaurants and the local people to dispose of their garbage. People can only dispose of their garbage after seven in the evening till five in the morning in the respective allocated place in their area. If we find the people are not throwing their garbage in the allotted time and in the proper place then a penalty will be issued on them,” he added. 

Gurung said people caught not following these rules would be fined on the spot to the tune of Rs 500 to Rs 1000. He said that the new rules also applied to the tourists who would behanded over seizure list and fined on the spot, if they were found littering wastes. “As far as the tourists are concerned, they will not know about the rules here so we are making a brochure ready which will be handed to them indifferent places, informing them about the do’s and don’ts,” he said.

“At present we are seeing that as soon as the municipality collects the garbage from different areas then people go and dispose of their garbage there. It gives the wrong impression that the civic body is not doing their work,” he said, adding that they have also received videos showing people throwing garbage soon after their waste collection vehicles have collect the wastes. 

The civic body had removed garbage vats from most places in the recent past in an effort to minimize waste being thrown there as people used to throw garbage all around the vat area, making the whole area filled with garbage.
The civic body had the vats replaced with dustbins along with the introduction of a door-to-door collection of garbage.

However, what is being seen at present is people throwing more garbage than the dustbins can hold, making the area look filthy while in some areas the dustbins are missing.“ This is also to do with the mentality of the people. The civic body is doing its work, but the people should also be conscious and think that it is their Darjeeling and it is also their duty and responsibility to keep it clean. Everyone should be involved in keeping Darjeeling clean,” said Gurung.