Urban News

The Hindu - Andhra Pradesh 01.08.2009

MCE’s ‘clean city campaign’ comes under scanner

G. Nagaraja

Plastic danger: A heap of plastic waste dumped on the bunds of the Krishna Eastern canal eastern locks at Eluru. Photo AVG Prasad

ELURU: The scene of a mound of plastic waste dumped on the bunds of Krishna Eastern Canal near east locks on the city outskirts brings the ‘clean city campaign’ launched by the Municipal Corporation of Eluru (MCE) under the scanner. The canal network, meant to cater to the irrigation and drinking water needs, forms itself as a necklace for the city which is located at the tail of both the Godavari and the Krishna canal systems.

Use of canal bunds for dumping of plastic wastes and garbage is a common site all along in and around the city, raising the heckles of the environmentalists. The scenes of washing milk cans and the other light and heavy vehicles in the canals at different points also greet the passers by. The canals as well as the Tammileru, a river which connects the former at the western locks turned out to be drainage channels carrying the sewage water let off by residents and builders. The disturbing scenes could be attributed to the lack of commitment on the part of the MCE in sensitising the public on the matters relating to environment and water safety.

The recent council meeting of the MCE debated on the reported failure of its ‘innovative’ campaign billed as ‘Waste out of Wealth (WOW)’. The campaign was launched during the period of Md. Khadar Sahed as the municipal Commissioner. The project went into a rough weather soon after his transfer. The MCE during his period had a tie-up with the Bhadhrachalam-based ITC company for ‘wealth generation’ out of the municipal waste in the city. The residents were requested to segregate the dry and wet wastes and deposit them into two separate designated bags supplied by the ITC and the bags were in turn collected by the MCE through tri-cycles for the purpose of the so-called WOW. The MCE had purchased 150 tri-cycles for the purpose. Machinery worth Rs. 15 lakh was purchased for waste management and sheds built near Bharat Nagar for installation of the machinery. The scheme, however, did not take off for a variety of reasons. A section of corporators lamented that the project proved to be a ‘sheer waste of public money’.

The Hindu - Andhra Pradesh 01.08.2009

Modern UGD for Cyberabad

— Photo: P.V. Sivakumar

CIVIC ISSUES: The open sewage system in Cyberabad will be a thing of the past with the area set to get modern underground drainage.

HYDERABAD: Almost a decade after it hogged limelight as the most modern and happening hub of the city, Hitec City and its surrounding localities are now in the process of acquiring the modern underground drainage (UGD) network.

The works taken up with Rs. 40 crore cleared by the government for laying sewer mains and underground drainage in Hitec City area were grounded and have reached various stages of completion.

According to Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) officials, some of these works were in advanced stages of completion while other packages too were progressing for the initiative taken up with funds from A.P. Industrial Infrastructure Corporation, Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority and Serilingampally Municipality.

“The works are almost over and we can say nearly 90 per cent of the project is completed,” said M. Satyanarayana, HMWSSB Director (Projects).

Other projects

Meanwhile, the Board is also in the process of setting up pace for works to be taken up at a cost of Rs. 200 crore for which 35 per cent of the funds are to be provided under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). This project, which has the State government chipping in with 15 per cent of the project cost and the rest to be shared by agencies such as HMDA and APIIC, seeks to lay the underground sewage network for the entire Serilingampally Municipality spread over 42 square km.

Though host to several leading IT facilities and one of the most sought after destination for real estate, the areas of Madhapur, Kondapur and others which are part of Serilingampally have for years been without proper sewage network.