Government should stick to assurance: local body

The State government's efforts to resolve the issue surrounding the Vilappilsala solid- waste treatment plant got further hampered on Thursday after the Vilappil panchayat decided to stick to its stand that clay and machinery will not be allowed into the plant until an assurance on permanent closure of the plant was given.

All houses to be brought under waste management network

The first of the source-level waste processing schemes, declared in the annual budget of the State for 2012-13, will come up in Pala municipality. Speaking at the meeting called to discuss the issue at Pala on Tusday, Finance Minister K.M. Mani said all the houses within the municipal area would be brought under the waste management network within two months.

After his memorable victory, newly-elected MMC Chairperson Arthur D’Silva said he would accord top most priority to streamline the city traffic and set up multi storey parking facility with the help of the government.

He told newsmen after assuming office, that he would take along with him the people of Margao and Fatorda to usher in the development of the city. “We have come together for the development of the city. Monsoons are fast approaching and we have to start working from today on this front”, he said.

The waste treatment plant will now be finally commissioned at the Sonsodo garbage dumping site in July.

Fomento Green CEO Sridhar Kamat said that work on the proposed waste treatment plant at Sonsodo has got underway and the same is expected to be complete in all respects by July. “The civil works to set up the massive shed covering at the site has got underway. The plant and machinery is already ready and will be moved to the site upon completion of the civil works”, he added.

Thrikkakara municipality has passed a surplus budget of Rs.12.09 crore for the 2012-13 fiscal here on Thursday. The budget presented by vice-chairperson Shereena Shukoor envisages an income of Rs.87.79 crore against an expense of Rs.71.20 crore.

The budget earmarks Rs.1 crore to buy land for solid waste treatment in the municipality faced with the task of handling piled up garbage. It further sets apart Rs.25 lakh each for spreading earth over the dumped waste and for other ancillary expenses, including wages of workers.

The United Democratic Front-led district panchayat has passed a surplus budget of Rs.50.06 crore on Thursday, which the four-member opposition Left Democratic Front dispelled as a dream budget cut off from reality.

In her second straight budget, vice-president Bindu George envisaged an income of Rs.920.17 crore against an expenditure of Rs.870.11 crore. The budget proposes a waste treatment plant for generating power on 30 cents of land at an estimated cost of Rs.150 crore.

Finance Minister K.M. Mani has proposed a two pronged approach to address the state’s worsening waste management crisis with an allocation of Rs 100 crore each for source level waste treatment plants and centralised high tech waste management plants in the state annual budget for 2012-13.

It has been proposed to construct large scale technology oriented waste processing plants in PPP model in Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Kottayam and Kozhikode districts with an allocation of Rs 100 crores.

In a bid to boost solid-waste management at source, the City Corporation has offered a one per cent concession in property tax for households that install solid-waste treatment plants.

Addressing a news conference after the presentation of the 2012-13 budget of the Corporation on Monday, Mayor K. Chandrika said that the tax discount was being offered to encourage installation of decentralised waste management systems in city residences.

In what may turn out to be a boon for developing countries, scientists claim to have created a device which can generate electricity from waste water.