KAKKANAD: In a major fillip to the Kochi Corporation’s pre-monsoon drive, Minister for Urban Affairs Manjalamkuzhi Ali has announced the sanctioning of temporary cleaning staff in all wards in the Kochi Corporation.
The government sanctioned the temporary staff in connection with the observance of Urban Day that falls on May 30.
“The cleaning workers will be deployed under the Ayyankali Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme. The selection process of these has to be done by the councillors itself. Their service will be available for three months. They will collect plastic waste, remove illegal hoardings and take up cleaning work at the ward level,” the minister said while inaugurating the Animal Birth Control Programme of Dogs (ABCD) and the multi-specialty veterinary hospital at Brahmapuram here on Thursday.
The government has decided to provide Rs 300 per day for the temporary cleaning.
“Earlier the government had given around Rs 200 for the cleaning staff but for the pre-monsoon cleaning drive we have set Rs 300 for these daily workers,” the Minister said. The commissioning of the new septage treatment plant installed at Brahmapuram will be a reality soon, he said. “The trial run of the plant will start within two weeks. Along with this, the government is awaiting quotation for new solid waste treatment plant and that too would be finalised soon,” he added.
Mayor Tony Chammany who presided over the function said the government’s move to provide temporary staff would create drastic changes in the clean-up drive. Development Standing Committee chairman T J Vinod, GCDA chairman N Venugopal, Deputy Mayor Bhadra, Kalamassery municipal chairperson Jamaal Manakkadan, Corporation standing committee chairpersons Saumini Jain, Essy Joseph, R Thyagarajan and T K Ashraf, Corporation secretary V R Raju and additional secretary A S Anuja attended the programme.