THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : The corporation has served notice on the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) Central Bus Station for failing to implement proper waste management facilities. The special squads under the civic body found out that the central bus station, which is frequented by several thousand commuters daily, lacks infrastructure for managing waste responsibly. Not only that, the bus terminal, which houses several shops and eateries, lacks proper waste management facilities.
The notice specifically highlights the improper disposal of liquid waste generated at the terminal. According to the officials, the waste generated from washing the buses and the terminal’s workshop operations is being directly discharged into the Amayizhanchan Canal. This unchecked release of contaminants into the canal poses severe environmental and health risks.
“KSRTC lacks proper waste management facilities. There are several shops inside the terminal and proper segregation of waste should be ensured. We have asked them to assess the quantity of waste generated on their premises. It will take some time to set up a liquid waste management facility. They can sign up for the services of Haritha Karma Sena for handling dry waste generated on their premises,” said a top corporation official.
The official said that the KSRTC has responded positively and that the civic body will offer all assistance to the KSRTC for taking corrective measures to resolve the waste crisis at the terminal.
In the past five days , the civic body has served notices on around 250 bulk waste generators including public sector undertakings. After the death of sanitation worker Joy, who lost his life while cleaning the Amayizhanchan Canal, the civic body has intensified enforcement activities. In July alone, the civic body collected fine to the tune of Rs 14,30,610 from violators. The civic body has deployed day squads, night squads and special squads to book violators littering public places and polluting water bodies. In addition to routine inspections, violators are being booked through photographs and videos captured by the public using mobile phone cameras and CCTV footage from homes.
For booking violations, the civic body is installing around 35 cameras including 10 AI cameras along the canal stretch. “We are installing cameras along the stretch and it will be linked to our Integrated Command and Control Centre from where we will be monitoring violations. There are around 10 cameras installed previously at various points along the canal and we are planning to maintain them and make them operational,” said the official.