Garbage dumping: Meethotamulla residents to take legal action
They indirectly said they would continue to dump garbage in the area.We are under the impression that the meeting was called to give us more promises that would not be kept
Residents of Meethotamulla yesterday said they would take further civil and legal action to prevent the Kolonnawa and Colombo Municipal Councils from dumping garbage in the area.
Attending a meeting called by the Mayor of Colombo, A.J.M Muzzamil and parliamentarian Duminda Silva, residents said they had no faith that the relevant authorities would take measures to resolve the issue in the near future.
Authorities had asked for a year to resolve the garbage issue in the area. “We were not given a solution, instead they asked us for more time,” said a resident who wished to remain anonymous.
“They indirectly said they would continue to dump garbage in the area. We are under the impression that the meeting was called to give us more promises that would not be kept. We have tolerated enough and we cannot tolerate anymore,” the residents said. Meanwhile Mayor for Colombo, A.J.M. Muzzammil said two issues had been identified and the authorities were working towards providing residents with a permanent solution to them.
The Mayor said the owners of the 110 houses that were demolished behind the dumping site would be resettled in their original places. “We are having discussions with the Urban Development Authority (UDA) to provide them with permanent houses in the area,” he said.
“The second issue is with regard to the garbage. We understand that we cannot continue dumping garbage in the area but we have reduced the amount of garbage being dumped by sorting out our garbage,” he said.
Muzzamil said they were seeking a permanent solution to the dumping of garbage but at the moment they were looking for an alternative land to dump garbage that was collected daily. “We are also hoping to have a meeting with the President and the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence to resolve the issue,” he said.
Pix By Nisal Baduge