Kerala - Kottayam   

`Clean Kerala' programme to be launched

Staff Reporter

Curtains come down on Kerala Congress(J) meeting

Almitra Patel, environmentalist, speaking at a people's convention on `waste-free Kerala' in Kottayam on Tuesday.

KOTTAYAM: Curtains came down on the five-day State-level conference of the Kerala Congress(J), with the party giving shape to an action plan to implement a `Clean Kerala' programme.

Dedicating the party machinery to the successful implementation of the project christened `Malinyamillatha Malyalanadu' at a people's gathering consisting of party workers and others, the chairman of the party, P.J. Joseph, stressed the need to launch a campaign from the grassroots level, and said the State should be able to replicate the success of the literacy campaign in successful waste management.

Though serious attempts had been made in various cities and other urban areas in many parts of the country in this regard, it was not known what percentage of the waste generated could be managed properly, he said.

Though Kerala had taken the lead in several areas in ensuring a high quality of life, in the area of waste management, its performance was below the national average. According to studies, 83 per cent of drinking water sources in the State were contaminated. Unless the issue was solved, the State would face a major setback in the area of health. The State was already witnessing the return of several diseases which were once thought to be eradicated.

Mr. Joseph said that with the State going in for urbanisation on account of the new consumerist culture, there would be a massive increase in the quantity of waste produced. The key to effective waste management was decentralised management models using modern technologies, he said.

Mr. Joseph wanted schools, parent-teacher associations, residential associations, industrial institutions, and local bodies to be involved in the `Clean Kerala' programme. "If Surat can be cleansed, Kerala can also address its waste management challenge successfully," he said.

In her keynote address, the noted environmentalist Almitra Patel said the key to successful waste management started with separation of the garbage in the houses itself. "Once separated, each of the component will become useful one way or other," she added.

The former Kerala University Vice-Chancellor B. Ekbal spoke. The conference also took up the challenge of preparing a Vision 2020 document for presenting an alternative development model for the State.

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`Clean Kerala' programme to be launched

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