Over ten thousand voters who live in a string of housing societies located along the periphery of a dumping ground in Mulund east have decided to punch the None-Of-The-Above (NOTA) option during the coming Lok Sabha elections. For the 30,000 residents of 19 societies of Hari Om Nagar, day after day of living their charnelhouse existence in the midst of a perpetual stench has convinced them that no politician can provide them a very basic need – their right to fresh air.And, when they read in Mumbai Mirror about the residents of Rushivan Society in Kajupada, Borivali, deciding to exercise the NOTA option, they decided to follow suit.Mumbai’s garbage is either sent to the Deonar dumping ground or to Hari Om Nagar. Started in 1968, the latter is the city’s second largest landfill of over 25-hectares where BMC dumps 2,000 tonnes of waste every day. This dump has now grown into a little hill, which is less than 200 metres from some of the 19 society buildings. The societies have now come together to form the Hari Om Nagar Apex Body Federation (HONAF).On Sunday, the residents gathered at Nalanda school in Mulund and announced they would vote NOTA, as they believe no political party or leader is going to work for their succour.Prabhakar Sonawane, chairman of HONAF, said the residents had given up hope of any solution, and the only option left was to reject all the leadership options. “We decided we would all vote NOTA in all elections until we get justice,” he said.Waste management experts have said that the BMC must look at alternative technologies to treat waste. “Garbage generates methane that causes fire. The only solution is bioremediation, a process where organisms convert garbage into compost.The BMC has ignored the plight of the residents by not finding a solution to the problem,” said Brijmohan Mundada, a waste management expert who employed bioremediation techniques at the Gorai dumping ground.Civic officials have said that a long-term solution could be reached once the state agrees to the BMC demand. “For the past two years, the BMC has been writing to the state, requesting an amendment to a clause in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act of 1886 to include the names of the contractors to the land lease agreement for landfill sites. Till date, garbage remains untreated as contractors refuse to set up a facility unless their names are added to the agreement.”