CLAP vehicles' poor performance disrupts sanitation in GVMC areas
By : Aruna
Update: 2025-01-23 15:56 GMT
Visakhapatnam: The performance of the Clean Andhra Pradesh (CLAP) vehicles in the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) limits has come under scrutiny amid accusations of their inadequacy in maintaining the sanitation standards.
Of the 608 CLAP vehicles, 598 are operational, while 70 are in reserve. Each vehicle, costing GVMC Rs 65,000 per month, is allocated to cover approximately 1,000 households and should make three daily trips, each carrying at least 500 kg of waste. However, these targets are seldom met, causing significant inconvenience to residents, especially in posh colonies like MVP, Ushodaya, Lawson's Bay and Doctors Colony.
Notably, the state government launched CLAP under the Swachh Andhra Corporation to improve sanitation in local bodies. GVMC has 572 secretariats, with vehicles distributed through them in Greater Visakhapatnam, Anakapalle Urban, and Bheemunipatnam Urban. The ward secretariat staff is responsible for ensuring that each vehicle collects, segregates and transports garbage to the yard. However, a lack of supervision has led to inefficiencies and non-compliance with the set guidelines.
Dr Naresh Kumar, chief medical officer of GVMC, said each CLAP vehicle collects garbage from approximately 1,000 households. The vehicles are supposed to make three trips a day. However, they often fail to do so, dumping garbage in canals and roads, creating unsanitary conditions, he said.
Secretariat staff is supposed to accompany the CLAP vehicles during door-to-door garbage collection and make surprise checks to ensure compliance. However, these checks are rarely conducted, leading to drivers and contractors acting at their discretion.
Officials estimate that 1,000 to 1,500kg of garbage is received daily from the thousand houses allocated to one vehicle. Additionally, garbage collected from markets, shops, and commercial complexes forms another 600kg. Despite the agreement that each vehicle should make three trips, reports indicate that only 200 to 250kg of garbage reaches the yard per trip.
An examination of the records at the Mudasarlowa dumping yard revealed that none of the 40 vehicles in Zone 2 made the required three trips. This was so across all dumping yards in the city.
A lack of supervision is evident at all stages of the CLAP vehicle operations. Although ward secretariat staff should accompany vehicles during garbage collection and make surprise checks, they are often absent. The weighing bridges at the yards, which should measure the garbage each vehicle brings, are poorly maintained. This results in unreliable records of the trash collected.
Due to the inconsistent arrival and performance of the vehicles, residents resort to disposing of household garbage in canals or on roads. This has led to littered residential areas and numerous complaints.
"I handle more than ten complaints daily about the functioning of the CLAP vehicles. We monitor the vehicles with GPS, but their performance should be better. Here, the resident's involvement is needed. They should first complain to the secretariat staff and bring it to the attention of GVMC," says Naresh Kumar.
Due to the inconsistent arrival and performance of the vehicles, residents resort to disposing of household garbage in canals or on roads. This has led to littered residential areas and numerous complaints.
"I handle more than ten complaints daily about the functioning of the CLAP vehicles. We monitor the vehicles with GPS, but their performance should be better. Here, the resident's involvement is needed. They should first complain to the secretariat staff and bring it to the attention of GVMC," says Naresh Kumar.