The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) sealed 58 shops and imposed fines totalling ₹4.36 lakh during a citywide enforcement drive against sanitation violations across Visakhapatnam on Thursday. The action followed inspections in all 10 municipal zones after GVMC Commissioner Ketan Garg directed officials to intensify checks on commercial establishments.
GVMC officials inspected 80 establishments during the drive. They sealed 58 shops and fined the remaining 22 establishments, according to the report. The violations included dumping waste in public places, littering on roads and in drains, using prohibited plastic materials and breaching other sanitation regulations.
Madhurawada recorded the highest number of closures, with 16 shops sealed and fines totalling ₹94,000 imposed. In the East zone, officials sealed 14 shops and collected ₹43,000 in fines. Eight establishments in the North zone attracted penalties of ₹55,500.
Officials sealed two shops each in Bheemili and the South Zone. The fines in these zones totalled ₹40,000 and ₹58,500, respectively. Five shops were sealed in the West zone, where officials imposed fines amounting to ₹37,500.
The enforcement action also covered Pendurthi, Gajuwaka, Aganampudi and Anakapalli. Three establishments each were sealed in Pendurthi and Gajuwaka, with penalties of ₹39,500 and ₹30,500. One shop was sealed in Aganampudi and fined ₹15,000, while four shops in Anakapalli were sealed and fined ₹22,500.
The violations identified by the civic body point to the responsibilities of commercial establishments in storing and handing over waste. Commissioner Ketan Garg said cleanliness and public hygiene were a priority for the GVMC and instructed zonal commissioners and public health officials to take stringent action against establishments disposing of waste indiscriminately.
Garg advised commercial establishments to store waste in dustbins and hand it over daily to Clean Andhra Pradesh, or CLAP, vehicles rather than dumping it on roads or in drains. Such disposal can obstruct drains and leave waste in areas used by pedestrians and other residents, although the report did not specify individual locations where the violations occurred.
The commissioner also directed officials to strengthen waste-collection mechanisms and closely monitor the operations of CLAP vehicles. The instructions place enforcement alongside collection services, with the civic body asking establishments to use the designated daily collection system while officials track its functioning.
The GVMC said negligence in maintaining cleanliness would not be tolerated and warned that the enforcement drive would continue. Further inspections and action against establishments found violating sanitation regulations are expected to be carried out through the civic body’s zonal and public health teams.
