Kerala - Kochi   

Waste mounting as garbage clearance grinds to a halt

Staff Reporter

Lorries that collected garbage detained at Kasaragod

PEOPLE'S IRE: Residents of Karikkamuri set on fire garbage heaps that were left unattended in the city on Thursday. - Photo: H. Vibhu

KOCHI: The removal of garbage has been affected in the city since Wednesday, after the contractor, who has taken the tender for waste disposal, stopped lifting the waste.

According to reports reaching the Kochi Corporation office, the lorries that collected garbage from the city were stopped at the check post at Kasaragod. The reports said that the lorries were detained as they did not have the mandatory certificates from the authorities.

No communication

Even though there were reports of the vehicles of the contractor being detained on the border, the matter has not been officially communicated to the civic body so far, said C.G. Santha, Health Officer of the Kochi Corporation.

The contractor was yet to turn up at the Corporation office. He has not contacted the civic authorities regarding the crisis, Dr. Santha said.

The civic authorities were waiting for communication from the contactor for devising some alternative measures for solving the crisis.

The civic body was facing the crisis at a time when some of the civic heads, including Kochi Mayor and Deputy Mayor were either out of the country or town.

Mercy Williams, Kochi Mayor; E.M. Sunilkumar, chairman, Town Planning Standing Committee, and a few others are currently touring the Cardiff City Council in England on an invitation from the city council.

The team led by the Mayor is expected back home on Saturday. C.K. Manisankar, Deputy Mayor, will be returning to Kochi from Hyderabad on Thursday evening.

He left for Hyderabad on Wednesday afternoon to take part in a discussion on the Kochi projects under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.

The civic body had awarded the contract for removing the waste from the city to a private contractor during the last week of November as it was finding the disposal of garbage heaps an uphill task.

Temporary steps

Garbage heaps have started mounting in various parts of the city. After the contractor stopped removing the waste, the Corporation took temporary steps for garbage disposal. Garbage that was brought to the Edapally zonal office of the Kochi Corporation from different parts of the city was buried in the office compound. Pits were dug on the zonal office premises using excavators and waste dumped, Dr. Santha said.

The civic body had identified a few sites in possession of some private parties for dumping the waste. However, it was not dumping waste there, fearing public opposition.

It was at a site on Wellingdon Island in the possession of the Indian Navy that the Corporation was dumping the waste till November 30.

The Navy refused to extend the date for dumping garbage, as it feared dumping of waste would bring birds to the area posing threat to its aircraft.

The alternative arrangements proposed by the civic body for processing waste, including biogas plants and vermi compost units, are yet to become operational in the city.

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