Garbage disposal at the Bancharedanda landfill site, which was halted on Friday morning, resumed in the afternoon after the Kathmandu Metropolitan City agreed to let locals from the affected areas in Nuwakot sell their produce at Machhapokhari in the Capital.

People from 1, 2 and 3 wards of Kakani Rural Municipality, the areas affected by the landfill site, obstructed garbage trucks on the road at various locations along the landfill site against the City’s decision of preventing the Nuwakot locals from selling vegetables in the Machhapokhari area on Friday morning.

“Garbage disposal resumed in the afternoon following an agreement with locals from the affected areas to let them sell their produce at Machhapokhari,” said Sarita Rai, chief of the Environment Department of the city administration. “We will let locals sell their products until 7:30 am on the roadside at Machhapokhari.”

The city office had mobilised its security personnel in large numbers in the Machhapokhari area from Thursday night to prevent locals from the landfill-affected areas from selling their goods. The move was the latest in the series by the city office, as its personnel had also prevented the sale of vegetables on the roadside from April 14 to 22, citing disturbance in vehicular movement.

“Our locals too obstructed over 200 garbage trucks from reaching the landfill site after they were prevented from selling their products in Kathmandu,” said Jit Bahadur Balami, a resident of Kakani Rural Municipality. “The metropolis officials have agreed to find an alternative place for the people living in the vicinity of the landfill site to sell their products.”

According to Balami, around 400 farmers from the affected areas bring food and vegetables to Machhapokhari for sale. They come in the wee hours with their products and return home in the morning after selling. He claimed that the metropolis officials agreed to let locals sell their products from 4 to 8 am.

Officials at the KMC, however, said that locals have to clear the road at 7:30 in the morning, as the road becomes too crowded by then.

Waste management has been a perennial problem in Kathmandu.

According to a rough estimate by the metropolis, 18 local units in the Kathmandu Valley generate over 1,200 metric tons of solid waste daily. Of that, 50 percent is generated from the Kathmandu Metropolitan City alone. Some local units from Kavrepalanchok also bring the waste to the same landfill site.