India, Nov. 18 -- With garbage collection halted for the past week in Kalwa, Mumbra and Diva, local residents are struggling to live amid the unbearable stench. As waste piles up across housing societies, residents are afraid the unsanitary conditions may lead to an outbreak of diseases.

On Monday, a group of residents from Mumbra and Kalwa and leaders from the NCP (SP) staged a protest by dumping garbage outside the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) headquarters, to highlight the civic body's failure to manage waste in their localities.

The sudden halt in garbage collection stems from a land dispute. The TMC-operated waste management dumping ground at Daighar is located on land owned by the local community. After the community opposed ...