IDUKKI: In Idukki’s Munnar, garbage would fetch people decent bucks. The panchayat authorities have come up with an attractive offer — cash prizes for those who tip off illegal waste dumping. The move is part of efforts to enhance public participation in waste management programmes.
Munnar panchayat secretary K N Sahajan has offered Rs 3,000 as a cash prize to trace the person who had dumped unsegregated waste in Ikka Nagar on Monday.
“Despite extensive measures to collect waste from the town and process them scientifically, miscreants continue to dump unsegregated waste in some pockets of the hill town. To trace such violators and discourage them from doing it, we decided to reward those who tip off illegal dumping,” Sahajan said. Offenders will be levied from Rs 2,000 to Rs 50,000 depending on the seriousness of their offence.
Earlier, after they were informed by the local residents, the panchayat had slapped a fine of Rs 2,000 on a group of tourists from Tamil Nadu, who dumped food waste near the highway. The panchayat has been implementing the “Green Munnar, Clean Munnar” drive in the hill town to create awareness about solid waste management and scientific disposal of waste.
“We want to safeguard the beauty of Munnar. An awareness campaign is being conducted on how to use reusable containers in public events. The panchayat is also providing the containers at a low cost. Besides, we have a door-to-door collection facility, where Haritha Karma Sena workers will collect segregated waste daily for which a fee of Rs 50 is charged from each household on a monthly basis,” Sahajan said.
Apart from installing a green checkpost in Old Munnar to collect waste from tourists entering the hill town, the local body has also formed a WhatsApp group named ‘Anti-Litter Volunteers Munnar’, incorporating local residents, taxi and tour bus drivers and tourist guides. From the details shared through this group, violators will be traced.