Chennai: Mounds of uncleared garbage, organic and man-made, stray cattle on the loose, and ankle-deep puddles of stagnant, foul-smelling effluents have turned the vegetable market in Thiruvanmiyur into an eyesore and a health hazard. The commercial complex, located opposite the Marundeeswarar temple is a property of the temple. Several stray cattle feed on the waste dumped here by shopkeepers throughout the day. Water stagnates in the middle of the complex’s parking lot, turning the place into a breeding ground for mosquitoes. While shopkeepers blame the corporation, the temple administration and locals place the onus on the vendors themselves. “The shopkeepers do not cooperate. Most of the waste generated is vegetable and fruit residue. Instead of disposing the waste from their shops inside the bin installed within the complex, they choose to discard it in plain sight,” says Chakkarapani, the corporation’s sanitation in-charge for the area.Vendors, however, said: “It is the corporation workers who have turned the place into a mini dumpyard. All the waste collected from nearby regions is dumped in this market as it is largely vacant near the parking lot. Secondly, owing to the repeated use of earthmovers to scoop waste, the ground level dipped, leading to water stagnation,” says M Selvaraj, secretary of the vendors association, Thiruvanmiyur.Association president P Vetri said: “We pay building and land rent for setting up shops here. It is the responsibility of officials to ensure thatthe premises is cleaned.”“The land belongs to the temple, and it is its responsibility to clean the area. The corporation is only cleaning the premises as a goodwill gesture as it registers a daily footfall of over 10,000,” says ward 180 councillor K Visalakshi.
