Sat Apr 12 18:26:59 UTC 2025: ## Post-Festival Cleanup in Mylapore Highlights Both Successes and Ongoing Challenges

**Chennai, April 12, 2025** – The recent Arubathu Moovar and chariot festival in Mylapore, Chennai, saw a massive turnout, resulting in an unprecedented amount of waste. However, a significant post-festival cleanup operation resulted in remarkably clean streets by the following morning, thanks to the combined efforts of conservancy workers and volunteers.

While residents praised the exceptional cleaning efforts, which involved a substantially increased workforce and pre-event planning including bin placement and awareness campaigns, concerns remain about the return of open dumping in the days following the event. The usual 300 kg of daily waste in Mylapore’s 33 streets ballooned to 3.7 tonnes during the festival. Urbaser Sumeet, the private company handling waste collection in partnership with the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC), implemented a special cleaning operation.

Despite the improvements, open dumping persists, particularly near food stalls and bus shelters. Conservancy workers recounted the challenges of managing waste during the procession, highlighting the inadequate waste segregation by festival attendees, despite awareness campaigns. One worker reported having to manually segregate waste discarded indiscriminately. A roadside vendor also noted the ongoing issue of open dumping by eateries, despite the two-hourly collection efforts by conservancy workers.

GCC Additional Commissioner (Health) V. Jaya Chandra Bhanu Reddy urged citizens to segregate waste and use provided bins, emphasizing that fines are being issued for improper disposal and that enforcement will be intensified. While the successful post-festival cleanup demonstrates the potential for effective waste management, the persistence of open dumping highlights the ongoing need for better public awareness and stricter enforcement of waste disposal regulations.

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