Kochi: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday (August 20) inaugurated the Rs 2,400-crore Kerala Solid Waste Management Project (KSWMP) as part of the second phase of ‘Malinya Muktham Navakeralam’ (garbage free) campaign here. Addressing a gathering, CM Vijayan said the southern state was being urbanised at a rapid pace and urged everyone to join hands to achieve a garbage-free Kerala. CM Vijayan said,
According to certain reports, at least 90 per cent of the state’s population will be urbanised by 2035. There are opportunities as well as challenges in this regard. Adapting to modern techniques for waste management is part of addressing the challenges.
Also Read: Kerala Gets ODF Plus Status For Proper Sanitation And Waste Disposal
Local Self Government minister, M B Rajesh, presided over the function where Industries Minister P Rajeeve, unveiled a new design for material collection facilities (MCFs) and resource recovery facilities (RRFs), developed by architect G Shankar.
Congress leader and Ernakulam MP, Hibi Eden, launched a new Grievance Redressal Mechanism developed by KSWMP.
CM Vijayan noted that a clean state will reduce communicable diseases and promote tourism.
The Left leader further said the aim was to make Kerala a model before the world in waste management by 2024.
The ambitious project is being carried out by KSWMP in association with the World Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
The current financial year will see the state’s 87 municipalities and six corporations launching sub-projects worth Rs 300 crores, which is one-fourth of the total grant they are to get to strengthen infrastructure for solid-waste management, the Local Self government department said in a release. It said,
The projects will be world class and are slated to be completed in a year.
Also Read: Solid Waste Management In India: The Great Garbage Challenge
The first phase of KSWMP drew encouraging response, with the percentage of doorstep garbage collection rising from 48 to 78, the release said, adding that the public reported 5,965 cases of illegitimate garbage heaps across the state since the roll-out of KSWMP, leading authorities to clear 95 per cent of them. The release said,
Penalties collected by the squad fetched the authorities a total of Rs 1.60 crores.
Meanwhile, Rs 25 lakh came through fines based on image-based tip-offs from informers, who are being paid 25 per cent of the penalty as consolation, it said.
Also Read: Garbage-Free Cities: What Have These Cities Done Right About Waste Management?
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF)status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
