Kerala: Brahmapuram wrong choice
Too late to make changes as corp has invested a lot of money: Mayor

Kochi: The choice of Brahmapuram as the hub of waste treatment of Kochi Corporation should be reconsidered in the light of the report by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science, Technology and Environment and Forests, says green activist Dr. CM Joy.
Brahmapuram, a floodplains area, is close to Chirtapuzha and Kadambrayar a source of drinking water for nearly nine panchayats, he pointed out. A verdict of the Supreme Court makes it very clear that a solid waste treatment plant sho-uld not be anywhere near a water body, he said.
On the indictment of the waste treatment system in Kochi by the Paliamentary Committee headed by Ashwani Kumar, Dr. Joy said it is only a reflection of the sorry state of affairs prevailing here.
The waste processing issue has been marked by mismanagement and corruption for past many years, he said. “I don’t think that the corporation council or the officials concerned have undertaken any study before selecting Brahmapuram, a marshy land for setting up solid waste treatment plant”, he added.
Soumini Jain, the newly elected mayor of the Kochi Corporation expressed her helplessness in finding an alternative place for setting up a waste processing plant.
“It is not practical to look for an alternative site as the corporation had invested a lot of money in the present site. The present council is determined that the setting up of the new plant will be in accordance with the relevant technical parameters”, she said.
On the criticism of the parliamentary committee the mayor has pointed out that the waste management system in the city has improved a lot. “I hope that the people in the city will recall the pathetic situation that prevailed six or seven years ago forcing the High Court to intervene in the matter”, she said.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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