The Hindu : New Delhi News : Delhi to get plastic roads

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jul 04, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Delhi to get plastic roads

By Sujay Mehdudia

NEW DELHI, JULY 3. In yet another attempt to deal with the environmentally hazardous plastic waste, the Delhi Government has decided to go ahead with construction of plastic roads in the Capital, a phenomenon quite common in Japan.

"I have issued instructions to the Public Works Department to work out details of the project within a week. It will take care of the huge amounts of plastic waste generated in the city,'' said the Delhi Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit.

This technology, Ms. Dikshit said, had been used to construct some roads in Bangalore and proved to be successful. Apart from ensuring sturdy roads that would withstand the monsoon fury, it would also take care of the plastic waste generated across the city. The use of plastics would provide income to the underprivileged and rag-pickers as they can sell it at higher prices. The Chief Minister said the people would also benefit as they could collect plastic bags and sell them to get some additional money. "Such an initiative would not only benefit people economically, but also check large-scale dumping of plastic waste into nullahs and dumping grounds which is an environmental hazard,'' she remarked, adding that one of the major reasons for sewers getting choked is the dumping of plastics bags in them.

Apart from Bangalore where the experimental project has proved to be very successful, plastic mix roads are highly successful in Japan. The Chief Minister said the plastic road project would be taken up in a phased manner. The bitumen mix becomes very strong when mixed with plastic. The new technology involves mixing of shredded polythene bags with bitumen. These compressed shreds modify the bitumen, making it stronger and durable.

"I just happened to attend a seminar in the Capital on this issue, not as a distinguished guest but just as a common person. It was a very knowledgeable session and that is what motivated me to get this project going,'' she added. The Chief Minister said a number of other initiatives in road construction and infrastructure development are likely to be announced in the coming budget. The time has come, she said, to look beyond the flyover concept for decongestion and work towards a comprehensive long-term solution to the Capital's traffic problem. The Government has decided to discourage construction of subways as they were a waste of money and were hardly used by pedestrians.

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