Ghaziabad civic body allots funds for projects to tackle solid waste, bad air

Officials said about ₹128 crore was approved for works related to solid waste management while ₹19 crore was earmarked for improving air quality

The Ghaziabad municipal corporation on Thursday met to chalk out different proposals for using funds received under the Fifteenth Finance Commission and officials said about ₹128 crore was approved for works related to solid waste management while ₹19 crore was earmarked for improving air quality.

The other works include purchase of poclain machine for cleaning drains, mechanised cleaning of public urinals, purchase of equipment for mechanised road cleaning and works for improving primary and secondary solid waste collection centres, among others. (HT Archive)

Municipal officials said about 34 works were cleared for air-quality improvement across the city. These include restructuring of Tigri roundabout and resurfacing of roads, improvement of damaged roads and construction of new roads.

The corporation also cleared proposals for improvement of city’s solid waste management. Officials said the approved works include making operational 200 new door-to-door solid waste collection vehicles in city, Kavi Nagar and Vijay Nagar zones besides roping in 150 CNG vehicles for solid waste collection.

The other works include purchase of poclain machine for cleaning drains, mechanised cleaning of public urinals, purchase of equipment for mechanised road cleaning and works for improving primary and secondary solid waste collection centres, among others.

“The works under the Fifteenth Finance Commission were approved on Thursday. This will pave way for making the city more cleaner and also improve the surroundings. Among other proposals, we have also approved other development works. These include works for beautification, supply of Ganga water to Vijay Nagar zone, construction of green crematorium near river Hindon besides ₹12 crore for improvement of roads in industrial areas. The works will be fast paced,” said Vikramaditya Malik, municipal commissioner.

Likewise, the city also suffers from high levels of air pollution, especially during the winter season.

In 2021, the Ghaziabad city was judged the second-most polluted city in the World Air Quality Report prepared by Swiss firm IQAir. In 2022 report, the city ranked more favourably at the 11th spot.

The city is listed among the 16 “non-attainment” cities in the state of Uttar Pradesh and its pollution levels generally remain on the higher side during the onset of winter.

Cities are declared “non-attainment” if they do not meet the national ambient air quality standards for particulate matter (PM10) or nitrogen dioxide (NO2) for over a period of five years.