To bring cleanliness to a local bar and restaurant, the Chikkamagaluru City Municipal Council (CMC) took drastic action on Saturday, February 14, 2026. Sick of littering and other public nuisance by the establishment, civic workers swept away garbage from the drains and streets near it and returned it to the bar floor. The Benaka Bar and Restaurant, situated in the Jayanagar extension adjacent to the National Highway, was the property of Benaka.
The "Reverse Dumping" Strategy
The action was initiated by Ward Member Kumar Gowda, the CMC President, and the Health Inspector, after many complaints of people of the well-known Jayanagar layout.
- The offense: employees of the bar were allegedly serving alcohol and food to people in their cars parked on the roadside. These guests would then throw plastic cups, liquor bottles, and food containers into the streets and drains.
- The Retaliation: When the bar opened on Saturday morning, CMC officials and health inspectors raided the location. Upon discovering a heap of trash in the drains that sat immediately adjacent to the bar, the authorities ordered the cleaning crew to collect up the trash and dump it back on the bar’s floor.
- Seizure and fine: Authorities seized a bulk of disposable plastics and containers and slapped the owner with a spot fine of ₹10,000.
A Public Nuisance Warning
Jayanagar residents had complained for years about the “drunkard menace” on the highway-side road. Women and students were common passersby facing harassment from people drinking in cars. "We have issued numerous warnings, yet the bar officials still promoted roadside drinking and illegal dumping.
If this will become a routine we will not hesitate to permanently cancel their trade license and close the bar," said a senior CMC official during the raid. The proactive “trash-back” lesson has become a buzzword around the city, with numerous residents expressing appreciation for the municipality’s “tit-for-tat” style of urban hygiene.
