Cuttack, Sept. 18: Garbage lying at different localities across the Millennium City is proving to be a damper ahead of Ganesh Puja.

Today, solid waste, dumped along the roadsides, was not lifted till 3pm. Local residents blamed the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) for the mess and demanded that the civic body take action as soon as possible.

“Despite the civic body’s tall claims, sanitation still remains a major area of concern for us. It is surprising that no major sanitation drive has been launched on the eve of Ganesh Chaturthi,” said Umesh Pradhan, a resident of Nuapada.

Pradhan said the solid waste generation increased during the festive season. At present, the city generated over 160 tonnes of solid waste a day. This figure is likely to go up by 50 to 60 tonnes in the next couple of days.

At present, Hyderabad-based Ramky Enviro Engineers Limited is engaged in the daily collection and disposal of solid waste from 36 of 54 wards. The company has installed compactor bins and tricycles for door-to-door collection of waste, pushcarts, auto tippers, tractors and dumpers for collection, transportation and disposal of waste.

“The compactor bins always remain full as they are not cleaned regularly. The sweepers just dump the garbage near the allotted compactor bins. This causes a lot of inconvenience,” said Saroj Lenka, a resident of Badambadi.

Mayor Saumendra Ghose said: “We will initiate measures to ensure that proper sanitation is maintained during the festive season. Last year, the civic body had installed extra dustbins at different puja pandals during Dussehra. It would draw up similar plans even this time.”