VMC Rolls Out 5 Loaders For Sanitation Drive

VIJAYAWADA: In a major push to strengthen urban sanitation and waste management, five new backhoe loader vehicles were launched at the Ajit Singh Nagar Garbage Transfer Station in Vijayawada on Thursday under the aegis of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC).

The vehicles were formally inaugurated by Vijayawada MP Kesineni Sivanath and Vijayawada Central MLA Bonda Umamaheswara Rao in the presence of civic officials and local residents. Officials said the civic body procured the five 74 HP backhoe loaders at a cost of Rs 2.22 crore to speed up sanitation, drainage and solid waste management works across the city. The machinery is expected to improve garbage clearance, desilting operations and maintenance of civic infrastructure.

Speaking on the occasion, MP Kesineni Sivanath said the launch of the vehicles would significantly improve sanitation services in the Central constituency, where residents had long faced problems due to garbage accumulation and drainage issues.

He said that after the coalition government came to power, MLA Bonda Umamaheswara Rao had been making serious efforts for the constituency’s development. Roads, drainage networks and beautification works were transforming the area and improving living conditions, he added.

MLA Bonda Umamaheswara Rao said the “Swachh Andhra” programme, monitored every month by the Prime Minister and Chief Minister, had brought visible improvements in sanitation management.

He said the area, once plagued by foul smell and garbage dumping, was now witnessing initiatives aimed at converting waste into wealth.

VMC chief engineer in-charge P. Satya Kumari, superintending engineer (Works) Chandrasekhar, engineering staff, sanitation officials and local residents participated in the programme.