Raise a stink, bring a change

Pushpa Girimaji

The municipal corporation is supposed to clear garbage everyday and we even pay a monthly fee to the person who collects it from our houses. However, for the last one month, nobody has been coming to collect the garbage lying in our street and it is piling up, raising a stink. We have complained to the civic authorities, but without any results. What action can we take to force them to do their duty?

Just shame the civic authorities who are not responding to your complaints by naming the officials and putting pictures of the garbage. Get all the residents to comment on that, condemning the unresponsive officials. That should force the authorities to take the required action. Social media can be a very effective mechanism to create public opinion and put pressure on officials who are not working the way they should. I am sure this will bring about an attitudinal change in the authorities.

Can we take up this issue before the consumer court and seek compensation for the harassment caused by the civic authorities. Do civic authorities come under the jurisdiction of the consumer court? What should be our line of argument? I must also mention that in this weather, the garbage has been breeding flies and mosquitoes, besides attracting rodents and stray dogs.

Yes, you can file a complaint in the consumer court against the civic authorities, provided you are paying for the service and it is not free. In this case, their failure to lift the garbage fits in with the definition of a ‘deficient’ or ‘negligent’ service under the Consumer Protection Act and you have every right to seek compensation from the civic authority for the harassment being caused to you. You must argue that that their failure to lift the garbage has put your health at risk. If residents have suffered infectious diseases from the mosquitoes and flies, you can also provide supporting evidence and argue for a bigger compensation.

You can also ask the court to direct the municipality to recover the compensation amount from those officials directly responsible for this mess in your houses and on the street. You can also ask for punitive damages, cost of litigation, besides directions to the civic authorities to ensure that garbage is cleared regularly without any delay or disruption.

However, I must warn you that the redress at the consumer court may take time. So take pictures of the garbage dump and get it cleared by using the social media. Garbage clearance need not wait for the consumer court decision.

I must mention that in Mukesh Kumar Aggarwal Vs Nagar Palika Parishad, Haldwani (RP no 2775 of 2004), the apex consumer court came down heavily upon similar behaviour by the civic authority and held that it was not only a case of negligent service, but “also a case of harassment of a common man who cannot match the might of the state instrumentalities.” The court also applauded the consumer for “knocking at the doors of the consumer court, instead of feeling helpless against the arbitrary action of the civic authorities” and directed the nagar palika to pay a compensation of Rs 10,000 to the consumer for its failure to clean the septic tank in the consumer’s house.

In this case, the civic authority had the responsibility of cleaning the septic tank and, as required under the law, the consumer had submitted an application and even paid the required fee of Rs 200. Yet, despite reminders, the civic body did not get the work done and the officials even insulted the consumer when he went to remind them. Finally, when the tank began to overflow and started emitting a foul smell, the consumer was forced to engage a private cleaning agency for the job and spend Rs 1,050.

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, before which he first filed the complaint in 2001, asked the Nagar Palika to refund the fee of Rs 200 paid by the consumer, in addition to Rs 1,050 spent by him on a private cleaning agency. In addition, it awarded Rs 1,000 as compensation and Rs 1,250 as litigation costs.

The nagar palika was, however, unwilling to accept its responsibility or liability and filed an appeal before the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, which set aside the order of the District Forum and directed the municipal body to refund Rs 200 and pay only Rs 500 as compensation. So, the consumer was forced to file a revision petition before the National Commission in 2004, resulting in it awarding a consolidated amount of Rs 10,000 in 2006.