Kerala - Kochi   

Poor garbage management comes in for criticism

KOCHI: Ombudsman for Local Self-Government Institutions M.R. Hariharan Nair has severely criticised the Thrikkakara panchayat authorities for the inefficient garbage management system in the panchayat and gave them 24 hours to take remedial measures.

The ombudsman visited the dumping yard of the panchayat on Friday, following reports that garbage had spilled into residential areas after a grill separating the yard from an underground canal gave way, putting the local residents into hardship.

He observed that the panchayat had failed to implement his earlier directive to install a grill, which is strong enough to withstand the pressure.

Instead the authorities had put in place a weak frame that got washed away in the rain.

Mr. Nair directed the Panchayat Secretary and the Assistant Engineer to put in place a strong grill within 24 hours.

He also directed them to cover the waste remaining exposed in the yard with soil within that period.

Additional District Magistrate K.N. Raje has been directed to ensure that the instructions of the ombudsman were fully complied with, District Collector M. Beena, who also chairs the monitoring committee to look into the garbage issue of the panchayat, said.

However, Paul Macheril, president of the Mavelipuram Residents’ Association, said that installing the grill would hamper the natural flow of the canal.

According to him, the permanent solution is to shift the dumping yard to the 51 cents of land owned by the panchayat at Vanachira, about 2 km away from the present yard.

But T.S. Subhash, panchayat secretary, said that the shifting of the yard would not be possible since a case is going on regarding the boundary of the land at Vanachira.

Mr. Macheril said that wells in the vicinity were polluted after waste spilled into residential areas.

Panchayat authorities said that the grill would be installed on Saturday, but cited the difficulty in finding workers who were ready to get down into the dumping yard. They also expressed doubts if the newly-laid grill would be able to withstand heavy rain.

Criticising the panchayat for not being able to find a permanent solution to the garbage issue, Mr. Macheril pointed out that it had failed to set up a garbage treatment plant as directed by the High Court way back in June 1999.

Last month, the ombudsman had directed the panchayat to consider the setting up of a solid waste treatment plant.

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