While people are greeted by a lush green campus at the Ranipet Municipality on Railway Station Road, a look inside the campus reveals a different picture altogether.
One side of the campus has been used as a junkyard for months. Twelve-year-old Naveen, who along with his father, came to the building in search of an e-seva centre, remarked to his father about the sorry state of affairs of the building.
This is a classic case of law-enforcing authorities flouting norms on the municipality premises in the town here.
While on the one hand, municipal authorities are slapping penalties on citizens caught dumping waste in the open as the part of the Swachh Bharat Mission and actively launching campaigns on cleanliness programme, on the other, the government office is filled with all sorts of wastes including broken/damaged terracotta toys, broken tracker trailor used for garbage clearance, a trash van, and a lot of broken garbage bins.
Many visitors have claimed the swanky entrance and the reality that is seen inside the premises gives a bad impression about the municipal administration. “We want them to remove the scrap and resell them as soon as possible,” said a visitor from Vembuli Amman Koil Street.
The campus recently accommodated the District Police Office, which has resulted in an increase in the number of visitors to the premises. But it seem that no one is bothered about the untidy look of the premises. The Commissioner or any other person in-charge of the Ranipet Municipality could not be reached for their comments. “What message do the government officials want to give to the people while talking about Swachh Bharat mission and cleanliness drive when they do not follow the same,” asked Venkatachalam N. from Kellys Road in Ranipet. Like all others, he also wants the municipal administration to clear the trash immediately and establish an organised parking lot for the vehicles or a garden in its place.
