The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation opened a vermicompost plant with 50 tonnes capacity at the APIIC Colony on Tuesday.

Vijayawada
East MLA G. Rammohan Rao inaugurated the plant along with Mayor Koneru
Sridhar, Municipal Commissioner J. Nivas and others.

Mr. Rao said
the plant including the onsite compost unit could handle about 50 tonnes
wet garbage generated in the nearby areas and de-compost it. He said
the State government planned to setting up such plants in the rural
areas.

Mr. Sridhar said garbage segregation was being done at the
household level in many areas and the wet garbage dumped at the
vermicompost plants. This would reduce the transportation burden on the
civic body, he said.

Mr. Nivas said plans were afoot to set up
similar plants at 11 locations and at all the rythu bazaars. He said
each onsite waste compost machine costing Rs. 4 lakh could compost 200
tonnes of garbage per day if installed at strategic locations.

He said such initiatives of installing compost plants would also help the city get better ranking in Swacch Survekshan.