Littering streets in Varanasi may now attract fines of upto Rs 1 lakh

Alarmed over reports of streets dotted with litter and garbage at Varanasi, raising health concerns in the city, the local municipal corporation has swung into action and announced penalties

Alarmed over reports of streets dotted with litter and garbage at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, raising health concerns in the city, the local municipal corporation has swung into action and announced penalties for dumping waste on streets.

As part of its plan to stop littering on streets, the Varanasi Municipal Corporation has announced that those found guilty of dumping garbage on the streets will be slapped with fines, starting from Rs 500 each.

The civic body further said the fines may go up to as far as Rs 1,00,000 for repeat offenders.

Municipal Commissioner of Varanasi, Pranay Singh, told ANI that vgilance on streets will be enhanced through the installation of CCTV cameras in the city and penalties will be imposed on anyone found littering the streets.

"Dumping of garbage would be recorded by CCTV cameras installed across Varanasi. The violators will be identified and imposed fines. We'll first issue notices to violators and if they still don't mend their ways, fines ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 1 lakh will be imposed on them. Strict action will also be taken against those who dump medical waste on streets," the municipal commissioner said.

The civic body has also opened a toll-free number -- 1533 -- for residents to report dumping of waste. Complaints could also be lodged on WhatsApp, the municipality informed.