Things are back to square one. Two days have passed since the transportation of waste to Kochuveli came to a halt. Neither the City Corporation nor the Suchitwa Mission has any clue as to the next step. But it seems the public are also not in a hurry for a solution, for in the last eight months, only 30,000 beneficiaries have come forward to adopt pipe-composting and there have been very few takers for bio-waste plants.
If, initially, it was the lethargic attitude of the Corporation that delayed matters, it was then pointed out that the cost of the pipes for the composting had shot up. The controversy over the non-availability of lids for the pipes followed. The State Government intervened and vowed to give a fresh lease of life to the project. Even that hasn’t helped.
Many Corporation wards have started pipe-composting projects, but the figures have not touched 500 at many places. The Kudumbashree Cleanwell units, Residents’ Associations and Karshika Karma Sena are involved in many places, offering support to the pipe-composting project. Still, the response is lukewarm. That the Cleanwell women themselves are not really enthused is the surprising factor.
‘’In my ward, I had handed over 1,000 forms to the residents’ associations. Despite working hard to get beneficiaries, we could only gather 800 people to take up pipe-composting. The rest have either genuine disposal methods at hand or still enjoy dumping it at open places or on roads,’’ says Deputy Mayor G Happykumar.
According to him, in a total population of 10 lakh, if the figures still hover around 30,000, that means the majority still believe in dumping waste it on the roadsides. Even if the former panchayat wards are excluded, the figures are discouraging.
The Health Standing Committee of the Corporation has also found this lack of interest among the public intriguing. ‘’Even when they accuse officials of not coming up with any solution, they are genuinely not interested in solving the garbage problem in their own houses. Some people say they have dug big trenches in the backyard, but since there is no system to check the disposal methods, we cannot confirm their argument,’’ says a Health official.
This, when the total cost a beneficiary has to incur is only Rs 90. The rest of the total, Rs 893, is given by the Corporation to the respective agency. Though many flats under the aegis of CREDAI have taken to composting methods, it is still a big NO from the public to bio-waste plants too.
The Kudumbashree Cleanwell women who were given training in the pipe-composting method have requested the Corporation to consider employing them on a certain wage per month, instead of asking the public to pay them.
‘’They are less interested because they want to be paid by the Corporation. Since the public itself is not showing much interest, how would the women have faith in the project?’’ asks M A Susi, member of the Kudumbashree Cleanwell Thozhil Samrakshana Vedi.
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