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SI Jamir (third from right) and others seen here during the launch of garbage carriers in Kohima on September 15.[/caption]
Our Correspondent
Kohima, Sep. 15 (EMN): To facilitate collection of wastes from the city, two type of vehicles consisting ‘refuse compactor vehicle’ for collection of wastes along the main road of the city and ‘primary collection vehicle’ with provision for collection of wet and dry wastes separately was launched this morning at Solidarity Park, New Capital Complex, Kohima.
Considering the urgent need to improve solid waste management in the city, SIPMIU and KMC have formulated the project for ‘Supply of garbage transportation vehicles and supply and installation of a dry waste segregation and re-use unit for Kohima’ to be funded under Tranche-2 of the ADB funded NERCCDIP/ NERUDP, Government of India.
Speaking as the chief guest, Advisor of Urban Development, SI Jamir, appealed to the Kohima citizens to cooperate with KMC in segregating the waste in order to fully optimise the use of the solid waste management facility at Lerie.
These efforts, he pointed out, will not only solve the city’s waste management problems but also enable the city to be clean, safe and environmentally sustainable.
While requesting SIPMIU and KMC to undertake programmes to ensure community participation in waste segregation, Jamir also advised the KMC to properly utilise and manage the assets. He also suggested evolving modalities for creating a corpus fund for the maintenance and replacement of the vehicles in future.
Presenting technical aspects of the project, SIPMIU Additional Programme Director, Er. Limanaro, said the sanctioned amount for the project was Rs 11.67 crores which included transportation vehicles for the waste collection system and recycling facility for plastic wastes. The work, she informed, has been awarded to M/s Blackberry Overseas Pvt Ltd – M/s Pele Khezhie (joint venture), and the facility for recycling of plastic wastes at Lerie is being developed.
It was informed that the wastes collection system would be undertaken by five compactor vehicles, 29 primary collection vehicles, which will be distributed to the wards through KMC. Besides, 42 numbers of 1.1cum binds, 52,000 number of household bins, 236 numbers of shoulder bins, 200 pairs of pole mounted bins and 432 sets of personal protection equipment have been supplied and distributed to the wards through KMC. The total cost of waste collection system amounts to Rs 659.35 lakhs.
Er. Limanaro also informed that the segregated wastes in designated locations along major roads will be collected in the 1.1 cum bins and lifted by the Compactor vehicles, while primary waste collection vehicles have separate compartments for collection of dry and wet wastes.
KMC Administrator, Kethosituo Sekhose, while suggesting for ‘way forward’ on management of waste collection vehicles said, MoU will be entered into between KMC and wards before the release of new vehicles.
A certain percentage of the sanitation fee, he said, will be deposited every month with the KMC in an escrow account where 70% of the funds will be strictly used only for purchase of new vehicles and the remaining 30% for maintenance of the landfill at Lerie.
Sekhose also pointed out that the ward sanitation committees faced an uphill task particularly in the collection of fees as there was a lot of opposition to the same. However, he expressed delight that after tireless affords put in by the ward councils and the sanitation committees, almost 6 years after the implementation communitised solid waste collection, the scene today has improved, adding some citizens have even some forward in paying advanced fees of even upto a year.
He strictly cautioned that these vehicles will be used only for waste collection purposes which will be registered in the name of KMC administrator and all original vehicle registration documents along with the spare keys will be in the custody of KMC.
The respective wards were asked to insure the vehicles within 15 days from the date of release of vehicles to the wards and that a regular half yearly audit of all ward sanitation committees should be carried out by the ward along with a representative from the KMC.