The Hindu            29.10.2013

Solid waste management scheme should be probed

Mayor S.M. Velusamy has asked the Coimbatore Corporation Commissioner G. Latha to investigate the way the civic body has implemented the Rs. 98-crore solid waste management (SWM) scheme.

After ordering the investigation at the last Ordinary Council Meeting on Friday, he told The Hindu on Monday that the way the civic body — meaning officials — had implemented the scheme was not right.

For, the civic body continued to face problems.

It was not the first time that he had asked for the investigation.

“I’ve been asking the officials to carry out a probe ever since I assumed office sometime in October 2011. I had asked the then Commissioner T.K. Ponnusamy, the Deputy Commissioner S. Sivarasu, who for sometime held charge as Commissioner and also the present Commissioner Ms. Latha.”

Stating that the officials had not taken seriously his suggestions for a probe, Mr. Velusamy said that he was forced to reiterate the demand in the council.

Sources familiar with the implementation of the solid waste management programme said that right from the word go, the Union Government-funded scheme did not proceed in the right direction.

The corporation had not distributed bins to all the city’s residents in that it was supposed to have to given white and green bins to each of the city’s residents so as to help them segregate waste into wet and dry wastes.

The corporation had not purchased the right number of pushcarts, was short of roadside bins, was yet to phase out bullock carts in waste management and had not successfully implemented the ban on plastics that were less than 40 microns.

The sources said that the corporation had concentrated the second and third stage of the project in that had bought a few bins, constructed a few transit stations, bought vehicles for the transport of the waste from the transit stations to the dump yard in Vellalore and roped in a contractor to process the waste there.

What the corporation did not do was educate the city’s residents on waste segregation — the first of the three stages of the waste management.

The result of the poor awareness creation exercise was that the Corporation transported mixed waste to the dump yard, where processing became next to impossible.

The sources said that the corporation was yet to spend the Rs. 45 lakh the Union Government gave to create awareness under the waste management project.

The Hindu              28.10.2013

Proposals to develop parks remain on paper

Sometime ago the Coimbatore Corporation issued orders to corporate houses, non-government organisations and a few others for the development of 19 reserve sites as parks and 12 traffic islands.

The orders, as on October 22, remain on paper as nothing much has happened since the civic body issued the orders, said sources in the civic body.

The Corporation’s novel initiative to rope in players in the private sector to maintain parks started sometime ago.

The meeting saw enthusiastic participation from the representatives of business houses, non-government organisations, residents’ welfare associations and others.

This led the Coimbatore Corporation to conduct another meeting in August this year with the participation of a large number of people in the presence of the then Collector M. Karunagaran.

Mr. Karunagaran and Corporation Commissioner G. Latha asked those interested in developing reserve sites and traffic islands to come up with a detailed proposal saying what they intended to do.

On its part the Corporation had prepared two park designs for the interested parties to either adopt or emulate, the Commissioner said and added that the Corporation would provide certain basic amenities.

After the meeting, the Corporation issued orders for the development of 19 reserve sites and 12 traffic islands with certain conditions (for a list of parks see graphic).

The sources said that the promise by corporate houses, non-government organisations and others seemed to be only public posturing for nothing has happened on the ground. The reserve site remained underdeveloped.

This lukewarm response had come at a time when the Corporation was desperately trying to survey reserve sites, take possession and place boards and publish the details thereof on its website to prevent encroachment and also public from being duped into buying those lands.

The Corporation had so far surveyed reserve sites in 22 wards and published the same on its website, on the home page.

The sources added that response had now cast doubts over the Corporation’s move to invite more private players to develop more reserve sites.

Ms. Latha said that it was a novel initiative that needed regular follow-up.

She had planned to invite those who had received the orders for development of parks to give a deadline and stick to the same.

The civic body would take a similar action to develop traffic islands, she added.