Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML) authorities on Thursday, October 30, began an unconventional cleaning drive that involves dumping garbage near the houses of habitual offenders.

Termed as ‘Kasa Surisuva Habba’, which translates to garbage dumping festival, the authorities took the initiative after repeated programmes failed to keep the city clean.

Several residents woke up to find the same garbage they threw outside their homes dumped by the authorities themselves. They were also reportedly fined up to Rs 10,000, a report by DH said.

The agency explained that marshals were deployed to track the waste from illegal dumping ‘black spots’ back to the responsible households. A senior BSWML official stated that this dumping festival theme was chosen specifically to create awareness and eliminate future black spots in the city.

“After dumping the garbage, we made the residents give it back to the garbage workers by hand. In some places, garbage workers themselves cleaned the garbage-dumping area, but residents were fined for littering,” a senior official from the agency said.

With around 200 houses targeted, the civic body plans to extend the drive citywide in the coming weeks, combining enforcement with awareness campaigns to promote better waste segregation and disposal habits.