KOCHI: As part of its city beautification plan, Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL) is setting up gardens on medians along the Metro Rail corridor. The agency has already started using biodegradable waste to prepare its medians on the Aluva-MG Road stretch. The idea is to convert biodegradable waste into a soilless planting medium to plant various shady tree saplings and flowering plants.
“Once the compost is ready, lawn and shrubs like syngonium are to be used for gardening. The first such median was successfully completed at MG Road near Padma theatre in the first week of January,” said a KMRL officer. The officer said the process of developing the median into a beautiful garden takes two months to complete.
The first activity is to lay the biodegradable matter and leave it untouched for 30 days so that compost is formed. Once the compost is in the developing stage a layer of pre-composed planting medium is filled on top. Then small burrows are made for saplings. KMRL feels that the move can solve the biodegradable waste management issue in Kochi to a large extent.
Compost from various residential complexes and biodegradable matter from Tripunithara Municipality are to be used. Pelican Biotech and Chemical Labs is implementing this project. Around 10 metric tonnes of biodegradable matter is used in a single median. Every six months, more biodegradable materials and compost have to be used.“Muthootu Mini Financiers has joined hands with KMRL to initiate the project. Medians between pillars 602 and 606 at Kaloor have now turned green with the biodegradable matter,” said the officer.