The Times of India                        09.11.2010

PMC gears up for Chhath

PATNA: The Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) is working hard to clean the entire city, particularly the roads leading to ghats, before Chhath which begins on November 10.

The civic body is responsible for sanitation in entire Patna, barring nine wards which it has outsourced to A2Z, a private sanitation service provider,

"We are working on war-footing to ensure that devotees do not encounter any problems due to garbage," Chandrma Singh, a senior PMC official who is looking after sanitation management during Chhath, said.

"A2Z is doing its job in all the areas it is responsible for. In the wake of Chhath we have made requests to A2Z to extend its area of function and clean more roads," Singh added.

Along with road sweeping, collection and disposal of garbage and the cleaning of drains, PMC is also spreading bleaching powers at dirty spots, a PMC official said.

Working on contract with PMC, A2Z Infrastructure Pvt Ltd maintains sanitation in nine wards of the city. The main roads which are under its maintenance are Bailey Road, Fraser Road, New Dak Bungalow Road, Boring road and Boring Canal Road among others.

Vikash Jha, DGM, A2Z Infrastructure informed TOI that A2Z sweepers are working round-the-clock to ensure good sanitation during Chhath.

"Our areas are the cleanest in the city. But there has been a sudden increase in the amount of garbage due to Diwali. Our employees are working to make sure all the main roads which witness extraordinary flow of devotees during Chhath are clean," Jha said.

When asked about the PMC request, Jha said A2Z had readily agreed to extend its areas of function for Chhath. "We have been requested to do some cleaning at Kurji More and streets which link to our roads. We have no problem and we are doing it," Jha said, adding that A2Z had increased the frequency and the area of its road sweeping machines.

Heavy flow of Chhath devotees is witnessed in Boring Road, Ashok Ra-jpath,Gandhi Maidan, Exhibition Road, Bailey Road and other major thoroughfares of the city. Both the PMC and A2Z are working hard to clean up the city prior to Chhath which is considered the biggest festival in Bihar.

The Pioneer  09.11.2010

Will take a week to clean garbage: MCD

PNS | Dehradun

The Diwali celebrations in Dehradun this year have caused substantial air and noise pollution in addition to creating large quantities of garbage. According to the information provided by official sources in Municipal Corporation of Dehradun, it will take at least a week for the MCD to clean the city of the garbage created by the Diwali celebrations.

It is to mention that earlier it was being thought that the damage caused by natural calamities in Dehradun and across Uttarakhand during the rainy season this year would result in the people spending lesser money on the festival of Diwali.

However, people have spent a substantial amount on crackers as a result of which the noise pollution resulting from bursting of crackers during Diwali this year was at least 30 per cent more than the level recorded in the previous year according to information collected by the Uttarakhand Environment Protection and Pollution Control Board (UEPPCB).

According to information received from local traders, the people of Dehradun purchased crackers amounting to more than `10 crore this year. This not only resulted in a substantial increase in noise and air pollution but also caused a major increase in the garbage generated by the festivities in different areas of the city. According to the senior city health officer Dr Gurpal Singh, with its present manpower and other resources, the MCD will require at least a week to clean the city of the garbage left behind from the Diwali celebrations.

Though there is much talk in the Government and public about making Dehradun environmentally richer, the Diwali celebrations have proved that the general public still prefers to spend money on modes of celebration which pollute the environment and also cause health problems to both humans and animals.