‘It’s even worse this year’—Trash is scattered around public places in Singapore after weekend festival

SINGAPORE: As the Deepavali celebrations in Singapore came to an end, the aftermath of the festivities was still felt and seen as large amounts of garbage were left on the beaches, roadsides, and residential areas around the country. 

Concerned citizens shared photos of public spaces that were scattered with used sparklers, food packaging, and other trash, and expressed their frustration as this is becoming a recurring issue every year. 

A reporter from Shin Min Daily News visited a Punggol HDB estate and found garbage all around the area, including plastic bags, cardboard boxes, burnt sparklers, and plastic bottles. These were strewn across the estates, including ground floor common areas, playgrounds and lawns. 

Furthermore, a resident also shared that a playground was not only filled with overflowing trash, but the sidewalks and grassy areas were affected as well. One resident did not dare to bring her children to the playground because there was no clean place. It was not until noon that she saw cleaners coming to clean. 

“It wasn’t this dirty last year, but it’s even worse this year,” the resident declared. 

Another resident also shared that he was supposed to take his grandson to the playground, but decided to return home after seeing garbage everywhere. 

According to a report by Stomp, a citizen saw a family lighting sparklers and playing with them near a barbecue pit in Sembawang Park. “The celebration reportedly left litter and debris scattered around the park grounds,” she said.

People also reported a large amount of rubbish left behind at Stirling Road.

“Why do people need to mess up common spaces?… It happened during the Seventh Month and now again during Deepavali,” a citizen asked. 

She added, “Thanks to the cleaners, the place is clean again.” 

Littering in Singapore

Singapore is known as a country that has strict rules about keeping the environment clean, and authorities actively stop people from littering. The government has laws that impose appropriate penalties, such as harsh fines and community services. The authorities are encouraging everyone to take care of their environment.

Littering actions such as throwing away small trash like tissues, food wrappers, cigarette butts, or plastic in public areas can result in a fine of up to $2,000 for first-time offenders, up to $4,000 fine for second-time offenders, and up to $10,000 fine for third-time or recurrent offenders.