BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Friday directed the state government to constitute a Technical Guidance Committee (TGC) immediately to suggest models to be adopted by the seven solid waste processing plants which are entrusted to the BBMP Zonal Joint Commissioners.
The HC also directed the chief secretary to take immediate action to withdraw the different duties assigned to environment/chemical engineers of BBMP and made them to take over the plants. A division bench of Justices B S Patil and B V Nagarathna issued this direction while hearing a batch of public interest peitions seeking directions to the BBMP for proper management of solid waste generating in city.
“Zonal joint commissioners shall be put in charge of each of the plant. They shall be entrusted with full responsibility for security and functioning and ensure optimum operation by monitoring each and every aspect of the plant,” the court ordered.
As per the order, the joint commissioners should visit the plants once a week and ensure the superintendent engineer of the zone visits twice a week and submits report. The zonal joint commissioners should convene meetings of plant managers to review progress.
The joint commissioner shall ensure that no stranger or unauthorised person enters the plants and plant area without written permission.The court also ordered the City Police Commissioner and Superintendent of Police, Ramanagara, to provide necessary protection to officials, employees engaged in transportation of segregated waste and vehicles inside and outside plants.
The court directed the additional chief secretary, Urban Development Department to ensure the BBMP commissioner constitutes the TGC under his chairmanship and ensure its functioning within four weeks.
NOTICE TO 38 WARD COMMITTEES
The court ordered notice to the convenors of 38 ward committees to appear before the court on May 28 for not conducting meetings to identify places within their wards for setting up waste processing plants. But the court made it clear that their personal appearance may be exempted if they conducted the meeting before May 28, the next date of hearing.