THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After almost a year, the city corporation has resumed dry waste collection in the city. The drive is being carried out in three phases. In the first phase, as much as 7,000kg of plastic waste was recently collected 6,200kg of plastic from the seven collection points and 800kg from the various Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) in the city. In the second phase that will begin on Thursday, glass waste will be collected. In the third drive on March 31, old bags and sandals will be collected.
Over the past three years, 543.6 tonnes of plastic was collected through various drives held in the city. However, corporation officials opine that the spread of Covid-19 affected the process apart from the delay in settling bills of contractors.
“Dry waste collection initiative was a big hit among city dwellers. But bills of a drive held in 2019 were cleared this January. Steps were also taken to extend the contract period of various collection agencies that expired in January 2021,” said a health wing official of the city corporation.
He also added that last week’s debut collection drive evoked a good response from the public who had dry waste stacked up in their homes for almost a year due to the pandemic. “Huge heaps of waste were piled up at various recovery facilities and collection centres since the contractors stopped picking them. In the coming days, we are planning to organise more dry waste collection drives and set up aerobic bins across the city,” said the corporation official.
The collection drives are being carried out in various parts including the Kazhakoottam ward committee office, Mudavanmugal junction, Pippinmoodu junction, Vanchiyoor junction and Putharikandam Maidan, near the Sreekaryam petrol pump. Non-biodegradable waste can also be handed over to various Material Recovery Facilities from 7am to 9pm. The public can get information about the nearest collection centres through the Smart Trivandrum app.