Edappally residents pay on behalf of litterbugs

KOCHI:The residents of Division 37 in Edappally are so fed up with litterbugs that they finally announced they are ready to pay up the garbage collection fees on behalf of violaters. 

According to residents, when the litterbugs didn’t stop despite repeated warnings, they decided to offer to pay waste collectors on the behalf of violators. 

According to councillor Deepa Varma, after putting up banners for the campaign offering money for ‘those finding it difficult to pay for the waste collectors’ in 10 different locations, illicit waste dumping has reduced considerably. 

“We had to resort to paying for them after many rounds of awareness sessions and imposing fines. We have a good waste management system in the division that comprises a team of migrant labourers as well as  local residents who collect and seggregate the waste from all the houses six days a week,” she said. 

Bio-waste is collected every six days and plastic waste is collected once every week. Since many consider waste collection as a bad omen, the team collects waste late into the night, at 1am or 2am. 

“Most of the residents are cooperative, but those who stay here only for a short duration fail to register for the waste management system and end up dumping waste here and there,” said Deepa.

Abandoned plots of NRIs, have also turned into dumping yards. “We do not know the actual owners of these properties,” said Deepa.

Deepa had started a solid  waste management system in the division when she was councillor in 2001. She had been managing it even after her term ended. When she was elected councillor for a second term, she became incharge of it once again. They collect Rs 150 from every house. Keeping violators in check is important for it success, said Deepa. .“If the number of waste kits dumped earlier was 20, it has reduced to just one or two now,” added Deepa.