Doorstep garbage collection: Chandigarh MC told to cover entire city by October end

The direction came during a review meeting on the targets set by the National Green Tribunal on solid waste management in Chandigarh

UT adviser Dharam Pal has directed the municipal corporation to initiate door-to-door garbage collection through its motorised vehicles in the entire city by October 31.

There are 2.5 lakh households and commercial establishments in Chandigarh from where MC has to collect garbage. (HT Photo)

The direction came during a review meeting on the targets set by the National Green Tribunal on solid waste management in the city.

The adviser also directed MC to speed up bio-mining of 5 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of legacy waste at the Dadumajra dumping site. The work was to be completed by May, but till now only 2 lakh MT waste has been removed.

“Since the beginning, my focus has been on sanitation and garbage management in the city. We will be strictly following timelines on different solid waste management issues. I have asked the MC to complete the coverage of door-to-door garbage collection and submit an action taken report,” said Pal.

There are 2.5 lakh households and commercial establishments from where MC has to collect garbage.

“Our aim is to complete the takeover process in the entire city by October 31. Currently, we have covered over 80% of the city areas. There are pockets in villages, 10 areas in rehabilitation colonies and around 200 markets areas which are still to be covered. 100% door-to-door coverage will also help in improving Swachh Survekshan rankings,” said Anindita Mitra, MC commissioner.

Since starting the takeover from cart-based collectors in December last year, MC has already deployed around 400 twin-bin vehicles. While around 400 were recently purchased at a cost of around ₹40 crore, 100 were earlier deployed in MC villages.

Within a couple of weeks, MC plans to deploy 100 more such vehicles in areas that were left out earlier, and also allocate more vehicles where there is a shortage.

Teething troubles continue eight months on

Eight months into the takeover, MC’s garbage collection continues to remain mired in problems.

Residents complain MC vehicles don’t turn up at regular times, and garbage collectors don’t pick up garbage from doorstep, particularly, from the first and second floors.

The garbage collection charges have also led to confusion among the residents. Recently, MC also faced flak for inflated garbage collection charges bills. MC is collecting garbage charges through water bills. Residents, in some cases, received bills more than three times the regular bills.

“The working the material recovery facilities also depends on the coverage of the door-to-door garbage collection. Also, the segregation of the garbage, which is currently at 65%, also depends largely on the effectiveness of this system,” said a MC official.