'Balmatta-Hampankatta to be litter-free zone soon'

Waste being dumped on the roadside between Balmatta and Hampankatta in Mangalore will soon become a thing of the past. Mangalore City Corporation is planning to declare Balmatta-Hampankatta as litter free zone soon.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, Mangalore City Corporation Commissioner Dr K N Vijayaprakash said that waste will be collected from the household and business establishments during fixed time  everyday. The waste are likely to be collected twice everyday. As a part of the solid waste management, the ‘dustbin-free’ garbage collection will be introduced from Balmatta-Hampankatta and garbage collected at the doorstep of residents. This will be a pilot project.

In fact, dustbin-free garbage collection is a part of three package scheme on the solid waste management proposal which is pending before the government for approval.

According to the new proposal, three contract agencies will handle the solid waste management in the jurisdiction of Mangalore City Corporation in three packages.

The problem of solid waste management should be tackled at the source itself. A major problem was that households and commercial establishments did not sort their waste before dumping it.

In fact, in 2003, under the Karnataka Urban Development and Coastal Environment Management Project,  a plan was drawn up to upgrade the city’s solid waste management capability to 120 tonnes a day by 2020.

However, the city is already producing 200 tonnes waste per day, he added.  
Some of the colleges in association with MCC have started creating an awareness on solid waste management among schoolchildren and public.

St Agnes College of Mangalore has constituted a ‘green army’ to create awareness in various parts of the MCC limits on waste management through skits and mime show.

Another NGO called Round Table has expressed its desire to create awareness on solid waste management, seggregation of waste from the source in schools.

“We want children to be messengers of solid waste management. Taking cue from vermi-technology unit at the Department of Zoology in St Aloysius College, the Mangalore City Corporation has also started vermicompost units in two wards namely— Court and Padav in the city as a pilot project basis,” he added.