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BBMP looks to insure waste processing units

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The Hindu        11.02.2016 

BBMP looks to insure waste processing units

  • Operators of the six new processing units have also been asked to take proper odour control measures.— FILE PHOTO: K. MURALI KUMAR
    Operators of the six new processing units have also been asked to take proper odour control measures.— FILE PHOTO: K. MURALI KUMAR

The proposal is still in the preliminary stages and the civic body is yet to choose an insurance company

Resistance is something the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is now familiar with. With the resistance from the citizens living around landfills and waste processing units over the past few years, and in some cases damage to the plants, the civic body is now looking to insure the units.

According to sources, the proposal is still in the preliminary stages and BBMP is yet to identify an insurance company. Confirming the move, BBMP Special Commissioner (solid waste management) Subodh Yadav told The Hindu that insurance cover was actually part of the terms and conditions agreed upon by both the civic body and processing unit operators. “The main reason for this is that the equipment and machinery in the units, apart from the other infrastructure in place, is very expensive. These waste processing units are like any other factories. Factories are insured, and these units should be too,” he said.

Odour control

Mr. Yadav also recently issued a circular with regard to odour control and disposal of refuse-derived fuel (RDF) in the six new processing units. Odour control measures were found to be inadequate at the units during spot checks by the Solid Waste Management Expert Committee.

Proper operation and odour control are the primary responsibilities of the operators, and they have been directed to put the necessary measures in place immediately.

He added that even six months after opening the plants, the operators had not made any arrangements for disposal of RDF. As per the agreement, the operator is responsible for the sale of by-products generated during the treatment process, and cannot stock RDF, compost or recyclables on the plant premises. “The plants cannot be used for storage. Once the by-products are channelled out of the plants, the space can be utilised in a more productive manner,” Mr. Yadav said.

Insurance cover was actually part of the deal between BBMP and operators, says an official

 

SDMC has just 2 staff to catch, shift monkeys

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The Hindu      22.01.2015    

SDMC has just 2 staff to catch, shift monkeys

Its two humans against hundreds of monkeys in South Delhi, with the local civic body relying on a couple of monkey-catchers to round up and relocate the simian population.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation has just two people employed as monkey-catchers and zero vehicles dedicated for the job, a senior Veterinary Department official said. A total of 371 monkeys were caught by the civic body between April and November 2014, the official added. The monkeys were relocated to the forests of the Asola Bhatti mines.

Office-bearers in the BJP-led Corporation had said the streets of South Delhi would be cleared of stray animals before the visit of U.S. President Barack Obama. He will be travelling through SDMC area on his way from the airport to a hotel in Central Delhi.

Leader of the House Radhey Shyam Sharma had ordered officials to make sure that stray animals were off the streets before Mr. Obama’s visit for Republic Day. However, officials are saying that the civic body’s cattle vans are not adequate to catch all the stray cows, dogs and monkeys.

SDMC Leader of the Opposition Farhad Suri said: “Just because the U.S. President is visiting, the civic body went into overdrive and announced that it will move all the strays. But, there are only two monkey-catchers.”

The other municipal corporations do not fare better in the monkey-catching business. The North Delhi Municipal Corporation has three monkey-catchers and it caught 254 monkeys from April to October last year.

 

Mandya CMC continues its drive to clear encroachments

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The Hindu        21.01.2015   

Mandya CMC continues its drive to clear encroachments

Some people voluntarily take away their belongings

Many structures along the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway were razed by CMC personnel in Mandya on Tuesday.
Many structures along the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway were razed by CMC personnel in Mandya on Tuesday.

As the traders seem to be unprepared to remove structures from footpaths, the Mandya City Municipal Council (CMC) has decided to continue its drive to clear encroachments along the main roads here.

The CMC on Tuesday removed several structures and compound walls that were blocking the way for pedestrians to walk on footpaths along the busy Bengaluru-Mysuru highway here.

In association with police personnel, the municipal council officials pressed into service an earthmover and tippers to remove several illegal structures between the CMC office and Someshwara Kalyana Mantap near Kallahalli.

While a few encroachers voluntarily took away their belongings from footpaths, a few others requested the CMC to stop the drive. However, the police ensured that the removal work went on without any hassle.

Meanwhile, the CMC said that the drive to remove encroachment would continue on other roads. Traders should not block the way for pedestrians on footpaths, CMC Commissioner N.M. Shashikumar, who supervised the drive, said.

 


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