Pathanamthitta: The bottle booths set up by local authorities to collect plastic waste have now become eyesores. Installed by the Angadi Panchayat at major streets and junctions, many of these booths are overgrown with vegetation, with no effort made to clear or maintain the surroundings.

The panchayat had introduced these bottle booths to curb the practice of throwing plastic bottles carelessly on the streets. As expected, people continue to deposit bottles in them. At the booth near the Pulimukku bridge, migrant workers even dumped other waste materials.

However, the booths are now completely covered by overgrown plants, making them almost invisible from the outside. Residents say an urgent cleanup is needed, ideally with the help of employment-guarantee workers, to restore the purpose of these booths.