Volunteers of the soon-to-be-formed Haritha Karma Sena (Green Action Force) will collect and segregate refuse from city households to transport it to the solid waste treatment facility of the Kochi Corporation.
The proposal for constituting the action force has been included in the draft bylaw for streamlining the municipal solid waste management system in the city. The Corporation went for framing the draft legislation invoking Section 33 of the Kerala Municipalities Act. The draft proposal, which was discussed by the health standing committee of the Corporation last week, will soon be placed before the Corporation council for approval.
The State Government’s clearance is required for the bylaw to come into force. A policy framework is needed for the civic body to handle plastic, solid and liquid, and electronic and other waste and to manage hazardous waste churned out by industrial units in, according to the civic authorities.
A legal framework is also required for keeping the city clean and to prevent dumping of waste on roads and other public places. The bylaw covers all sections of society, including individual households, traders, and industrial units, according to the draft document.
The Green Action Force will be formed in all divisions of the civic body, and each unit will cover at least 200 houses in the division, said T.K. Ashraf, chairman, health standing committee of the Corporation.
Ideally, residents of each division should be members of the action force. If enough members cannot be identified from a division, those living within the Corporation limits can be made members of the unit, says the draft legislation.
On all days, except Sundays, members of the units should collect refuse from the doorstep of residents. They shall also separately collect non-biodegradable, degradable and sanitary waste on pre-designated dates from the doorstep and transport them to vehicles engaged by the civic body.
The action force will also keep an eye on illegal dumping of waste in public places and waterbodies, according to the draft legislation.
