The Hindu                11.06.2013

Chennai’s waste output crosses 5000-tonne mark

Staff Reporter

Municipal solid waste collected in Chennai per day has crossed the 5000-tonne mark. The Chennai Corporation has attributed the rise in garbage collection to increase in number of workers, night conservancy and deployment of additional vehicles.

“We have increased night conservancy in seven zones. Around 3,000 conservancy workers are at work every night. We have also upped the number of vehicles and workers in all areas. This contributed to the increase in garbage collection,” said a senior official of Chennai Corporation.

The increase is in spite of the fact that night conservancy workers in Tondiarpet, Royapuram, Thiru.Vi.Ka. Nagar, Anna Nagar, Teynampet, Kodambakkam and Adyar zones have been unable to collect garbage in many stretches as a lot of people sleep on the streets, the official said.

The civic body will devise a strategy to cope with this issue. “Compactors are unable to enter the streets. So workers are forced to pull bins for a distance without disturbing those asleep on the road,” said the official.

The civic body has a total of 493 vehicles for conservancy operations. It will procure 50 more compactors. In the 12 zones cleaned by the civic body, 3,437 of the 3,462 tricycles were taken out for conservancy operations on Monday. As many as 13,285 conservancy workers cleaned the streets on Monday in the 12 zones as against the requirement of 14,411 workers. However, as many as 16,338 workers are on the rolls.

The private conservancy operator in Teynampet, Kodambakkam and Adyar reported that 2,926 of its 3,364 workers were on duty. Around 90.1 percent of its 1,355 tricycles were engaged in conservancy operations. The civic body has started to remove garbage from transfer stations across the city on the same day. This has also increased the amount of garbage taken to Perungudi and Kodungaiyur dumpyards everyday. Earlier, large amounts of garbage were left to accumulate in transfer stations, causing health hazard to residents of the neighbourhood.

Corporation officials said the rise was due to more vehicles and workers in conservancy operations.

The Hindu                 07.06.2013

Project to generate power from waste in Coimbatore city likely

Staff Reporter

Coimbatore Corporation is going to replicate a Singapore power project that utilises domestic waste to generate electricity.

Mayor S.M. Velusamy told journalists here on Thursday that half the 800 tonnes of waste generated every day in the city was disposed of through landfills at Vellalore, and the rest could be used to generate electricity.

Official visit

A three-member team from the civic body comprising Mr. Velusamy, Corporation Commissioner G. Latha and S. Baskar, Coordinator of IC Centre for Governance — the anchor non-governmental organisation that oversaw Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) projects — undertook an official visit to Singapore from May 26 to 31 as part of a delegation comprising representatives from 11 cities across India.

The trip was undertaken after an invitation from the Government of Singapore.

Officials from various departments explained to the Indian delegates how the infrastructure was developed in Singapore and the execution of different projects.

The Mayor said that the visit proved useful in studying the reasons that powered the extraordinary growth of Singapore from a colony of the erstwhile British emprise to a global economic power house.

Another initiative that would be adopted here was increasing the number of trees as Singapore had nearly 40 per cent green cover.

In the first phase, saplings would be planted at ideal locations on Avinashi Road and Tiruchi Road.

Mr. Velusamy said that in order to make the city completely free from garbage, non-governmental organisations would be given the task of creating awareness among the public on proper waste disposal.

Survey

The civic body was also contemplating the launch of a survey with feedback forms distributed to the residents of the city on the ongoing projects and ascertain future requirements.

A plan was also afoot to completely revamp VOC Park and add more recreational facilities. Non-governmental organisations would be given the task of maintaining other parks, he added.

Plan to replicate Singapore power project using domestic waste to generate electricity.