The Times of India  27.08.2010

KOLKATA: The Calcutta high court has asked Howrah Municipal Corporation to implement the long-awaited waste to energy project on a war footing and has sought a progress report within two weeks.

Passing an interim order after Thursday's hearing on a public interest litigtation that green activist Subhas Datta had filed in 2002 about the mismanagement of municipal waste dumping ground at Belgachia, Howrah, Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghosh and Justice Ashim Kumar Roy asked HMC to furnish the detailed terms and condition that have been made with Selco International Ltd, the joint venture partner for the waste to energy project. The court also directed Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority to prepare a detailed action plan for the disposal of wastes generated within HMC area and arrange for funds to implment the plan.

The Pioneer  25.08.2010

Stir against waste-dumping escalates

PNS | Thrissur

The agitation of the of Lalur village in Thrissur district against the Thrissur City Corporation’s allegedly unscrupulous dumping of its solid wastes is set to enter a crucial phase. Solid wastes produced by the people of four of the total five city corporations in Kerala have spelt disasters to those in the villages where they are dumped.

K Vasu, chairman of the Lalur Malineekarana Viruddha Samithi (a council against waste-dumping) will start an indefinite fast on Wednesday in front of the office of the Thrissur Corporation. Vasu said his fast would be against the alleged sabotage of the Lalur Model waste-management project by the corporation.

The people of Lalur have been agitating against the Thrissur Corporation, which has been dumping its entire solid waste in this village in violation of pollution control norms and disregarding court verdicts. The wastes of Thrissur Corporation have caused a sociological and health disaster in Lalur.

The Lalur Model waste management project was envisaged as a lasting solution to the problem, by which the wastes would be processed without impairing the environment. The Samithi had called off their agitations some months back after the corporation promised to implement the project, which was originally proposed by Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan.

Vasu said that the Kerala Government had issued a notification on May 14 regarding the implementation of the Lalur Model Plan (Lalur Mathrika Plan-LMP). The main objective of the Lalur Modal Plan was to separate the garbage and waste at the source itself and process in a decentralized manner, he said.

Vasu termed as most unfortunate that a group of 'corrupted' and 'tainted money-earners' had joined hands to sabotage the Lalur Model Plan at any cost. He said that though three months had lapsed since the publication of the notification for implementing LMP, no action had yet been taken, he said.

He alleged that the promised sum of Rs 3.9 crore had not yet been handed over to the Samithy as per the notification. He said that a meeting held on August 17 with Minister for Local Administration Paloli Mohammed Kutty in chair had taken a final decision on this but no action had so far been taken. .

Vasu said that over three decades the inhabitants in and around the Lalur were on an agitation to attain their right to live in a healthy atmosphere. He said that the city corporation had spent over Rs 5 crore annually for garbage removal from the city and several lakhs out of it were going to the hands of corrupted officials and elected representatives and the mafia.

If the Lalur Model Plan worked out successfully, similar plan could be implemented in Kozhikode and Kochi corporations and Kottayam municipality also. People living in villages away from the two corporations and municipality were suffering the pollution caused by the wastes produced by the townspeople.