Send video of litterbugs dropping waste to BSWML's WhatsApp number, earn Rs 250
Bengaluru: In a bid to curb rampant waste dumping, Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Ltd (BSWML) has launched a new initiative offering a Rs 250 reward to anyone who records and shares videos of littering incidents. The move follows the earlier ‘Kasa Suriyuva Habba’ campaign, which targeted litterbugs by dumping garbage at their doorsteps.
The videos can be shared on BSWML’s dedicated WhatsApp number, 9448197197.
BSWML Managing Director Karee Gowda said the agency has received a clear mandate from the government to address key waste management issues while restructuring infrastructure to meet the city’s needs over the next 30 to 40 years.
“Given a freehand by the government, BSWML is able to take bold steps, including dumping waste at the doorsteps of such mischief mongers who care less for the city and its aesthetics. To strengthen BSWML’s image and ensure people take us seriously, we are launching the video initiative. Those shooting the video should share the location and also details of violators if possible,” The New Indian Express quoted Gowda as saying.
Gowda noted that people continue to litter, often too lazy to hand over their garbage to auto tippers sent to their doorsteps.
BSWML is also exploring ways to transfer the reward money directly to the UPI accounts of people who share videos, with their identities reportedly kept confidential.
Addressing concerns about the additional financial burden on BSWML, an official said the agency will not incur a loss, as the rewards will be paid from penalties collected from litterbugs.
“We collect Rs 1,000 to 10,000 depending of the quantity and type of waste dumped by irresponsible public. Rewarding Rs 250 is not a loss at all and this will rather encourage people to keep the city clean,” TNIE quoted an official as saying.
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Congress cites Maniben Patel's diary entries, asks Rajnath to apologise for Babri claim
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Saturday shared diary entries of Vallabhbhai Patel's daughter from a book to rebut Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's claim that India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, wanted to build the Babri masjid using public funds, and demanded that Singh apologise for spreading "falsehoods".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, claimed the defence minister was spreading falsehoods to “improve his relationship” with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Here is Maniben's original diary entry in Gujarati on pages 212-213 in the book ‘Samarpit Padchhayo Sardarno’ by CA R S Patel 'Aaresh', published by Sardar Patel Vallabhbhai Patel Memorial Society, 2025,” Ramesh said on X, sharing screenshots of the relevant pages from the book.
“There is a huge difference between what is contained in the original diary entry and what Rajnath Singh ji and his fellow ‘distorians’ are propagating,” Ramesh said.
“The Defence Minister must apologise for the falsehoods he is spreading, simply to improve his relationship with the PM,” he claimed.
The Congress had earlier termed Singh's claim that Nehru wanted to build the Babri masjid using public funds a “lie” and “WhatsApp university story”, and said the defence minister should not walk in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's path.
Addressing a gathering at Sadhli village in Gujarat's Vadodara district last Tuesday, Singh said Nehru wanted to build the Babri masjid using public funds, but Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel didn't allow his plans to succeed.
The BJP had cited a book by Vallabhbhai Patel's daughter to double down on Singh's claims, and said the first prime minister also said he felt "repelled" by some of the temples in south India despite their beauty.
“The source of what Rajnath Singh said is the 'Inside Story of Sardar Patel, Diary of Maniben Patel'," BJP Rajya Sabha MP and national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi had said at a press conference at the party headquarters while responding to media queries on the issue.
Trivedi claimed that on Page 24 of the book, it is written that Nehru also raised the question of the Babri mosque, but Sardar Patel made it clear that the government could not spend any money on building a mosque.
