Urban News

  • Increase font size
  • Default font size
  • Decrease font size
Solid Waste Management

A2Z company back to lifting garbage in city

Print PDF

The Times of India                          19.03.2013

A2Z company back to lifting garbage in city

KANPUR: The A2Z company has once again been entrusted with the responsibility of lifting garbage in the city and its staff started executing the job from Monday.

Though the staff had started working from Sunday after a long meeting with the municipal corporation officials, but the execution took place in full swing from Monday morning.

A2Z officials and municipal corporation officials held a meeting on Sunday and arrived at a settlement.

The company had stopped lifting garbage since March 1 and the municipal corporation had taken the responsibility of disposing of the garbage in the city. But despite best efforts, municipal corporation could not lift more than 700 tonnes of garbage per day while the city produces more than 1,200 tonnes of garbage per day.

Within a fortnight, the city was stinking with heaps of garbage strewn around and residents had started burning it on roads. According to sources, officials of municipal corporation had convened a meeting late on Saturday evening and it was decided to hand over the task to A2Z. During the Sunday meeting, A2Z officials once again raised the issue of realization of user charges and nagar nigam officials said that now the user charge would be collected in presence of inspectors.

According to earlier agreement, the company was to be paid Rs 456 per ton for lifting of garbage and a sum of Rs. 9 crore was pending against municipal corporation. On the other hand, nagar nigam officials had alleged that the company was lifting debris and charging instead for garbage.

The municipal commissioner commented that very soon city would be free of garbage as A2Z officials had assured that they would clear the city of garbage before the festival and for this they would press more manpower and mechanical infrastructure.

Arrears to be distributed before holi: All employees of municipal corporation Kanpur nagar would receive their arrears before holi festival.Municipal commissioner N K Singh chauhan on Monday passed an order to pay all the arrears to all employees before the festival. According to a release issued by the municipal corporation a sum of Rs. 39.66 crore would be distributed among the employees. The commissioner besides the order of arrears also granted promotion to 145 sanitation employees first time. The employees not only welcomed the municipal commissioner but also garlanded him.
Last Updated on Tuesday, 19 March 2013 09:22
 

Church, civic body tie-up to dispose e-waste in Kochi

Print PDF

The Times of India                        18.03.2013

Church, civic body tie-up to dispose e-waste in Kochi

KOCHI: The Kochi corporation's move to solve the hazardous e-waste problem in the city has got a shot in the arm, courtesy the church.

With the civic body cornered on dumping plastic waste at the Brahmapuram waste treatment plant, the accumulating e-waste in the city area had become a major headache for the local body.

The corporation has now teamed up with an NGO - the Kothamangalam Social Service Society (KSSS), the official social development wing of the Diocese of Kothamangalam - to remove e-waste from city limits. The NGO is, currently, holding talks with various churches in the city to finalize collection points. The new system will be launched on March 26. Fr Paul Choorathotty, the director of KSSS, said that the final list of churches participating in the programme would be finalized this week.

The civic body is hoping the system would help to dispose e-waste generated at homes and workplaces. This is how it works - citizens must take e-waste to collection facilities set up by churches located across 22 health circles of the Kochi corporation; special trucks have been arranged to collect the hazardous waste and transport it to recycling units or processing centres outside the state.

The initiative would bring down dumping of plastic and other hazardous substances at the Brahmapuram solid waste treatment plant. Health standing committee chairman T K Asharaf said the initiative was important for Kochi which was quickly turning into an IT hub. Many electronic equipment used by the industry contains harmful substances such as mercury, and the corporation cannot afford to continue dumping such substances along with other plastic waste. "Special licence is required to handle e-waste and other such hazardous substances. The corporation with the help of the NGO has identified private agencies which have these licenses. The waste will then be taken to other states that have e-waste recycling units," he said. Since NGO is funding the whole programme, the corporation will not have any financial liability or commitments. The waste will be collected from the people free of cost.

The NGO has already experimented with a similar programme in association with the Thodupuzha municipality, and is set to launch the project in Muvattupuzha municipality on March 23. "In both places, we have the support of local churches. This is a sustainable programme and it can become successful with the cooperation of people, institutions and local bodies in the particular area," said Fr Choorathotty.

According to a report published by the Kerala Pollution Control Board (PCB) in 2010, the amount of e-waste generated in Kerala could come to 1,50,000 tonne per year if five kg of e-waste is generated per person per year. Despite this, the state does not have a e-waste treatment and disposal facility. The report had stated that to construct an e-waste treatment and disposal centre in the state would cost about Rs 10 crore.

Better than the rest

* The e-waste disposal system, proposed by the Kochi corporation and the Kothamangalam Social Service Society (KSSS), an NGO, is said to be the first time in the state. Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Kollam and Kozhikode corporations have stated that they don't have a system for the safe disposal of e-waste

* This is how the system works - citizens must take e-waste to collection facilities set up by churches located across 22 health circles of the Kochi corporation; special trucks have been arranged to collect the hazardous waste and transport it to recycling units or processing centres outside the state

* The initiative would bring down dumping of plastic and other hazardous substances at the Brahmapuram solid waste treatment plant

* KSSS has already experimented with a similar programme in association with the Thodupuzha municipality, and is set to launch the project in Muvattupuzha municipality on March 23

* According to a report published by the Kerala Pollution Control Board (PCB) in 2010, the amount of e-waste generated in Kerala could come to 1,50,000 tonne per year if five kg of e-waste is generated per person per year.
Last Updated on Monday, 18 March 2013 10:20
 

Delete the e-waste

Print PDF

The New Indian Express                        18.03.2013

Delete the e-waste

 


Page 134 of 265