Kannada Rajyotsava celebrations in Belagavi proved to be a task for the civic workers of the city corporation, with a team of a dozen officers and staff being deployed for over six hours to clean up the garbage.
Over 7,000 kilograms of waste were picked up from the Rani Channamma Circle and surrounding areas where the celebrations were held. Ragpickers, who are paid on the quantum of garbage collected, earned over ₹20,000, for collecting around two tonnes of plastic bottles. Belagavi City Corporation (BCC) officials estimate that there were at least 70,000 bottles of one litre each.
The other waste included footwear, plastic bottles and bags, clothes, and flowers. BCC officials said that dry waste of around four tonnes, including clothes, rubber and plastic, were sent to a private cement factory to be used as fuel.
