HYDERABAD: It has been 13 months since the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) launched its ambitious waste segregation project and dual wastebin policy. However, despite it being diligently followed by a few garbage collectors, the efforts seem to have gone waste.
Though there have been several deliberations and efforts to create awareness, the GHMC contractors are ignoring the segregation process at the garbage transfer stations before transporting it to the Jawahar Nagar dumpyard.
When Express visited the Kaithlapur transfer station, a total of 250 auto tippers were found carrying close to 50 tonnes of waste — all generated in the 10-A division of Kukatpally.
Neither drivers nor contractors had segregated the waste. “We have stopped the segregation process for the last three months because of the huge amount of waste generated and continuous festivals,” explained a contractor working at the station.
Even the transfer of waste is done on ground, contrary to the proposed system of overhead transfer compartments that load garbage into tipper trucks. “There are frequent traffic jams at the unit and we have not been told to continue the dry-wet waste disposal process,” said an auto driver.
Similar situation prevails at many other garbage transfer stations including Yousufguda and Srinagar. Over 20 contractors and rag pickers were found working at these sites without any protective gear, handling hazardous waste with their bare hands. GHMC officials claim they have been trying hard to take the initiative forward.
“We are not getting desired results. Firstly, there is a need to change the mindset of people and that is taking time. We are conducting periodic inspections of transfer stations to check the waste segregation process, but things need to improve,” said Karthik, deputy executive engineer, Solid Waste Management (SWM), GHMC. “Many people do not understand the importance of segregating waste. They are aware of this campaign, but there’s no sincerity,” said Superintending Engineer Koteshwar Rao.
