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Corporation Council to Decide on ROB Width Today

Monday, 10 February 2014 11:36 administrator
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The New Indian Express              10.02.2014 

Corporation Council to Decide on ROB Width Today

A final decision on the alignment of Pachalam ROB and the fate of  the political opposition against it hangs in the outcome of Kochi  Corporation’s council meeting slated for Monday.

While the ruling party is all set to approve the realignment of the ROB  project, the Opposition has decided to intensify protest inside and outside the Corporation from Monday.

The LDF parties would walk out from the council  if the agenda item on ROB’s re-design is approved against their protest. They would also agitate against the ruling council outside the Council meeting too.

Meanwhile, while the Corporation council will discuss the agenda on Pachalam ROB, the Goshree-Pottakuzhi Action Council would stage a dharna in front of the Corporation office on Monday afternoon. The action council members said if the Corporation approves the ROB re-design, they will immediately move to the DMRC office at the Revenue Towers and would burn in effigy the ROB re-design made by the DMRC.

The action council claims it would have around 500 people, including representations from the trader’s association, in attendance for the agitation. It’s the third time the council is going to discuss the ROB re-alignment. The long-pending ROB project at Pachalam returned to the spotlight in December when the DMRC proposed a 10 metre ROB, which according to them would need merely `33 crore, instead of the earlier proposed JNNURM-funded 22-meter ROB penned to cost `136 crore.

In January, after a brief discussion, an agitated opposition had walked out of the Council meeting against this re-alignment proposal.

The first council meeting of February ended with the opposition parties staging a dharna in front of the Mayor’s chamber, and writing to the authorities against giving approval to the realignment without a discussion in the council.  It is after creating such mayhem that the council is bracing itself for a formal discussion and to give a final word on the ROB on Monday.

“The 22 metre-wide ROB proposed under JNNURM was conceived to decongest traffic in the city. But, the new design of a narrow 10m bridge is an attempt to suffice vested interests and garner votes in the coming election, jeopardizing development of the city,” said Opposition leader K J Jacob. However, the Congress councillors and other members of the ruling council said that the Opposition is playing politics on the ROB issue as polls are around the corner.

 

BWSSB Profits Seeped Through Old BU Meter

Monday, 10 February 2014 10:58 administrator
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The New Indian Express              10.02.2014 

BWSSB Profits Seeped Through Old BU Meter

A faulty mechanical water meter at the Jnana Bharati campus of Bangalore University (BU) caused a monthly revenue loss of at least Rs 36,000 to BWSSB for over 10 years.

Though BU consumes approximately 2 million litres of water every month, the old meter reportedly recorded less than half the used amount. The BWSSB charges `36 for every kilolitre of water after consumption crosses a certain slab. Ironically, as BWSSB does not have any scientific means to substantiate its findings of loss of revenue at BU, it cannot charge the University for the ‘unrecorded’ usage.

BWSSB engineer in-chief T Venkatraju said, “The defect in the meter came to light only after we replaced it with an advanced digital meter as part of our automated meter-reading project.” He said mechanical meters are inefficient and become defective, and it is difficult to ascertain if they are defective and malfunctioning. “We are planning to replace the existing mechanical meters at the premises of bulk consumers with digital meters to ensure that readings are accurate,” he said. According to BWSSB sources, the Board is likely to ask commercial and bulk users to bear the cost of replacing the existing meters with digital ones.

The BWSSB is implementing a pilot project to make the meter-reading process automatic by installing digital meters programmed to transmit usage data to a centralised server. The data from the meter will be updated on the BWSSB website and can be accessed by consumers.

The project is expected to help BWSSB minimise losses from use of unaccounted-for water, which currently stands at over 40 per cent. Moreover, it will help regulate the flow of water to ensure equitable distribution.

 

Deadlock ends as sweepers to wear A2Z uniforms, sell it recyclable waste

Monday, 10 February 2014 10:52 administrator
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The Indian Express              10.02.2014 

Deadlock ends as sweepers to wear A2Z uniforms, sell it recyclable waste

Almost after three years, the deadlock between A2Z garbage lifting company and Valmiki Samaj workers ended on Sunday, with both the parties reaching a compromise over garbage lifting in the city.

A2Z company, hired by the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation for collecting garbage from door to door and transporting it to the dumping sites, reached the compromise with the Valmiki Samaj Bachao Andolan. According to the compromise, the sweepers from Valmiki Samaj will continue collecting garbage from door to door but they will have to hand over garbage to A2Z vehicles or bins and not throw it in nooks and corners.

Talking to Newsline, Rajnish Mehra, CEO, A2Z company, said: “Valmiki Samaj was doubtful of we snatching their livelihoods. But today we have made it clear that they can keep doing their work like before collecting garbage from doorsteps but will not be allowed to throw it anywhere. They will put it in bins placed by us or at dumping sites from where our vehicles will further transport it.”

Mehra added, “Now Valmiki Samaj will be given our uniforms which they have to wear while working and in the next couple of days, the process of distributing uniforms in all the wards will be done.”

Mehra said the “step will ensure a win-win situation for both the parties and make Ludhiana free from eyesores of garbage heaps”.

A2Z has agreed on providing health insurance to all Valmiki sweepers along with monthly health check-ups. Another major step taken has been to ensure that sweepers earn from the recyclable garbage.

“A2Z has agreed to buy plastic sheets and other recyclable material from Valmiki sweepers at market rates. We want to ensure that their livelihood is not affected because of us,” said Mehra.

The toll-free number run by A2Z for garbage-lifting complaints — 1800-1200-117 — was also shared with hundreds of Valmiki workers who came to meet Mehra and Joint Commissioner A S Sekhon at Circuit House on Sunday.

Surinder Kalyan, head, Valmiki Samaj Bachao Andolan, told Newsline, “We are completely satisfied with all the points made by A2Z and will be working in cooperation with them wearing their uniforms.”

 
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