The Rs. 44-crore modern solid waste management facility for Salem city is gathering dust. Non-availability of vehicles to transport garbage collected from 60 wards in Salem Corporation and erratic power supply have put the Solid Waste Management (SMW) plant in Chettichavadi, on the city's outskirts, grossly under-utilised.
The modern scientific recycling unit for safe disposal of solid waste is undertaken on a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) basis by a private contractor based in Gujarat. But the project is still on a trial run since it went on stream eight months ago since the civic body is unable to supply 350 tonnes of waste every day to make the plant run to its full capacity. Situated on a sprawling 100-acre land, the plant is supplied only 150 tonnes of solid wastes currently for recycling. The Corporation spends about Rs.1.5 crore a month for collecting waste from 39 wards, while the private contractor is paid Rs. 37 lakh for collecting waste from 31 other wards.
The non-availability of lorries and tractors to transport the waste to the plant results in continuous dumping of solid waste at Erumapalayam yar.
Commissioner M. Ashokan says currently 120 to 150 tonnes of wastes are being taken to the plant for recycling. Under the Integrated Urban Development Scheme (IUDS), tenders would be floated for purchase of two compactors that would each carry 10 tonnes of wastes and 110 stainless steel bins, all at a cost of Rs. 1 crore.
No comments:
Post a Comment