Trapped in toxicity: Residents of Visakhapatnam’s Gajuwaka struggle for breath of fresh air

The Garbage Transfer Station (GTS) located in Ward 76 of Gajuwaka amid densely populated colonies, has become a source of severe pollution and health issues. Locals complain of constant foul odour, black coal dust, mosquito menace, respiratory and skin ailments. Despite repeated agitations, the residents fear that long-term health consequences are imminent due to official apathy, explains Harish Gilai

Published - March 06, 2026 09:44 pm IST - VISAKHAPATNAM

Clean Andhra Pradesh (CLAP) vehicles unload waste at the Garbage Transfer Station in Gajuwaka. In the background, heavy vehicles clear the accumulated waste for transportation to the Kapuluppada dumping yard in Visakhapatnam.

Clean Andhra Pradesh (CLAP) vehicles unload waste at the Garbage Transfer Station in Gajuwaka. In the background, heavy vehicles clear the accumulated waste for transportation to the Kapuluppada dumping yard in Visakhapatnam. | Photo Credit: V. Raju

Chirping birds, a pleasant morning breeze, and nature’s gentle awakening are not what greet the residents of Ward 76 in Gajuwaka, Visakhapatnam — also known as the ‘City of Destiny’. Instead, mornings here usually begin with the foul stench of garbage emanating from trucks lining up en route to the Garbage Transfer Station (GTS), operated by the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC).

Though officially designated as a transfer station, locals describe it as nothing more than a dumping yard. Spread across nine acres, the facility receives hundreds of tonnes of waste daily before it is transported to Kapuluppada, the city’s main dumping site.

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