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Effective waste management need in city
Posted on: 06/Jul/2015 11:42:03 AM
With Chennai being the highest generator of waste in the country, waste management in the city has been a big challenge. A few years ago, the Corporation had made a plan to segregate waste and manage it better. However, that plan has since been shelved due to costs.
Ramky Enviro Ltd. currently clears garbage in Adyar, Kodambakkam and Teynampet zones in the city. There charge Rs. 1640 per tonne of garbage collected and transported. One of the bidders for the project (a the lowest at Rs. 2600 per tonne for the whole city) was National Cleaning Company (NCC). An official from the company says, ‘65% of the garbage generated in the city can be recycled... We will have to distribute two garbage bins to each household, conduct awareness programmes on source segregation, collect wet and dry wastes from the doorstep and also transport them to Perungudi dumping ground. So, the rates will also be higher.’
When asked about the costs, a Corporation official said, ‘This (the quote from NCC) is not an affordable rate for the corporation. Every day , these four zones generate more than 660 tonnes of garbage, which translates to more than `17 lakh per day...We may have to float another tender to privatise the operations in four zones.’
Environmentalists and activists in the city say that the key to effective waste management is waste segregation. ‘Fines should be imposed on those who don`t segregate waste at source. Waste generation is greater among higher income groups, but these households usually don`t allow their maids to segregate waste as it is time consuming... Proper enforcement will bring about a change... Chennai should emulate the Pune model for waste segregation. Nearly 2,300 ragpickers work with Pune Municipal Corporation to promote source segregation. The ragpickers are not paid by PMC, but get Rs. 40 a month from each household. They are also allowed to sell the recyclable scrap and are provided with identity cards, tricycles, gloves, coats, slippers and soap... This is cost effective when compared to private firms’, they say.
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