At least 12,000 families living in 240 buildings in Chandivli’s Sangharsh Nagar have been facing problems arising from garbage accumulation on every street and corner of their locality. A total of 67 employees from self-help groups (SHGs) contracted by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) are responsible for cleaning this locality every day as part of the Swachh Mumbai Prabodhan Abhiyan (SMPA). According to the residents of this area, no one turns up to clean their locality.

“The result is the accumulation of piles of garbage, household solid waste, plastic and other recyclable waste materials, such as bedding, and construction debris. During the monsoon, these piles of garbage become breeding grounds for mosquitoes,” said Gautam Shirsath, 28, a resident of Sangharsh Nagar.

The locality houses those rehabilitated from the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) about 15 years ago, and has been informally categorised by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) as vertical-slum dwellers. Due to this, civic services, such as solid waste management, are provided to the residents through the SMPA, a scheme re-purposed from the Slum Adoption Scheme in 2013.