February 3, 2015
KMC Clean City project to turn Kolkata vat-free
Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s solid waste management department is on its way to realize the dream of a vat-free city that they had started nurturing after the introduction of mechanized compactors last year. Aptly christened Clean City programme, this is a boon for the citizens who had for years lived through stench from more than 200 open vats around the city. The open vats are being discontinued.
Once the garbage disposal modernization project is fully implemented, there will be as many as 78 modern garbage transfer stations – located at vantage points of the city – fitted with modern vehicles and equipment. These stations will replace large garbage vats that litter the road.
Currently, there are such station at Kalighat, Southern Avenue, Ballygunge Circular Road, Tallah, Chetla, Northern Park, Samsul Huda Road, Mirza Ghalib Street and other junctures. KMC is striving hard to replace all major vats since there are no less than 150 such vats in Kolkata. This apart, the KMC plans to buy movable compactors to collect garbage from roadside vats.
Kolkata Mayor Sovan Chatterjee said that Kolkata Municipal Corporation has taken up a project to turn Kolkata into a “Vat free” city within March 2015.
Around 163 moveable compactors will be set up in all the fifteen boroughs replacing the vats at an estimated cost of Rs 152 crore. The project is expected to be completed by March 2015. Some of the wards under KMC have already got compactor machines. Around 15 such machines have already begun functioning. This is part of a beautification drive for the city, the Mayor said.
KMC has been also planning to extend the time of duty from 5 to 9 p.m. for workers who are deployed to clean the city.
