Latest news with #MC
Time of India
6 hours ago
- Time of India
After warning, vendors challaned for littering city
Ludhiana: Cracking down on street vendors failing to maintain cleanliness around their vends, MC teams issued challans to 95 of them in different parts of the city for littering and not keeping dustbins. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now This despite MC commissioner Aaditya Dachalwal issuing an order, directing street vendors to ensure dustbins/receptacles and cleanliness around their vends earlier this month. The order clearly stated failure to do so would invite a challan of up to Rs 2,000. It alwarned that an FIR could also be lodged against repeat offenders. The street vendors were ordered to hand over the garbage to garbage collectors or dump it at designated sites (transfer stations) only after closing down their vends at night. They were asked to refrain from burning waste, spitting, urinating in public spaces, or using banned single-use plastic items at their stalls. Acting on these orders, the health and tehbazari teams of all four zones of the civic body conducted a drive and challaned the violators. Of these, 10 challans were issued in areas falling under zone 'A', 20 in zone 'B', 23 in zone 'C', and 42 in zone 'D' of MC. The teams also issued challans against the use of banned plastic carry bags by the street vendors. MC commissioner Dachalwal said while the civic body is making consistent efforts to ensure cleanliness, the street vendors and residents should also do their bit for the same.
Time of India
a day ago
- Business
- Time of India
Chandigarh MC accelerates bioremediation to clear legacy waste
Chandigarh: The municipal corporation, Chandigarh, nears the completion of bioremediation of the third and final legacy waste dump at the Dadumajra dumpsite, as the civic body on Monday claimed to have processed 70-75% of the waste. The MC stated that, despite challenges, the project was accelerated with a 15 to 20-fold increase in deployed machinery and manpower. Since Chandigarh failed to achieve the 7-star ranking even after applying in this specific category for Swachh Survekshan and received just a 3-star rating under the Garbage Free City (GFC) category, the piled-up final or third legacy waste at the Daddumajra dump site was found to be the prime culprit for this. Although the MC is working to remove this garbage dump and work is ongoing at the site, there was a consistent delay in the work and multiple breaches of the deadlines were witnessed in the past. While justifying its efforts in this regard, the MC on Monday said that this final or third waste mound, comprising approximately 2.40 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of legacy waste, is being cleared with support from two major public sector undertakings (PSUs) and the existing agency, operating in two dedicated shifts to ensure rapid progress. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like American Investor Warren Buffett Recommends: 5 Books For Turning Your Life Around Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo The completion of this bioremediation effort marks the end of landfill dependency for Chandigarh, a transformative step towards sustainable urban living. "As per the report of July 21 (Monday) till 5 pm, only 59,000 metric tonnes of legacy waste remain to be processed in the final dump," the MC claimed through an official release. Box: There were a total of three major dumps of legacy waste, piled up over many decades at the Daddumajra dumping site due to the non-processing of the waste earlier. This entire exercise of removal of legacy waste started around seven years ago, and the first work to remove the first dump of the legacy waste was inaugurated by the then governor of Punjab and Chandigarh administrator, V P Singh Badnore, in Dec 2019. MSID:: 122819211 413 |
Time of India
a day ago
- General
- Time of India
Stuck in the muck: Panchkula's waste drive falters despite years of push
Panchkula: Despite years of efforts to implement door-to-door collection and waste segregation, Panchkula's solid waste management system remains stuck in a state of inefficiency and neglect, with key goals still unmet. As per the latest Swachh Survekshan 2024-25, waste collection has failed to cover all households, leaving 39% of the areas underserved. Besides this, segregation at source has not met desired results, with only 20% of waste being segregated, says the survey. Residents say that the data could differ from the 'worse' ground reality, despite the fact that they pay annual collection charges to the Panchkula municipal corporation and monthly charges to private door-to-door garbage collectors. 'Collectors mix segregated waste' The president of the Federation of Residents Association (FORA), R P Malhotra, stated, "The ground reality is more worrisome. As far as wet and dry waste segregation at the source is concerned, even if the residents segregate it, the collectors mix it. They have not made separate waste containers in their carts. The failure of the municipal corporation is evident in the fact that garbage collection has still not reached every household. The agency responsible for the task is earning quite well. However, it has not been held accountable. To top it all, we are paying double charges." Echoing similar views, S K Nayar, president of the Citizens Welfare Association, commented, "We have stopped giving waste to MC's collectors as they were not segregating the waste and collection was irregular. We have now hired private collectors, who segregate the waste. The real question is why residents are paying for waste collection and segregation at two levels when the system is still not functioning properly. It's high time it is improved. Besides this, collectors or residents who are dumping the waste in the open in different parts of the city should be penalised." Additionally, the absence of the city's own waste processing plant is a significant hindrance to effective waste management. The city's solid waste is sent to Ambala for processing. There is neither a processing facility nor designated dumping areas for horticulture and construction and demolition waste. They too are found dumped here and there. Waste generation vs processing was given a 51 per cent score in the survey. A silver lining On a brighter side, the city got 99 per cent marks for the remediation of dumpsites. However, residents find the score higher when compared to the remaining legacy waste. As per the MC, the high score is due to the clearing of the dump at Jhuriwala by remediation of the legacy waste. The remaining dump at Sector 23 is expected to be cleared soon as the work is in the final stages. Mayor Kulbhushan Goyal told TOI, "We have recently distributed bins in Sector 15 to encourage segregation. We are also improving the system. As far as waste collection is concerned, it stands at 61 per cent because the garbage is not getting lifted from slums or colonies — which are with some HSVP and it is not possible to implement it there — and housing societies, where people have their own arrangements." Box: CLEANLINESS CHECK or DUMPS N DATA State of solid waste management ((as per Swachh Survekshan 2024-25) Category | Score Source segregation | 20 per cent Door-to-door collection of waste | 61 per cent Waste generation vs processing | 51 per cent Remediation of dumpsites | 99 per cent MSID:: 122818563 413 |
Time of India
a day ago
- Business
- Time of India
After months of talks, PGI clears Rs 10cr in property tax
1 2 Chandigarh: After months of persistent follow-ups, notices, and negotiations, the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) has finally cleared a major chunk of its long-standing property tax dues. In a landmark move, PGI deposited Rs 10.28 crore to the Chandigarh municipal corporation, the highest single payment made by any government or private entity to the civic body in the current financial year. The payment follows a detailed reconciliation process between PGI and MC officials, involving multiple meetings, document exchanges, and field visits. The total arrears calculated stood at Rs 24 crore, of which PGI has now paid nearly half. According to MC records, several key government institutions still owe the civic body over Rs 100 crore in property tax and service charges. Among the top defaulters are Panjab University (Rs 60 crore), the engineering department of Chandigarh administration (Rs 17 crore), and Chandigarh Railway Station (Rs 3 crore). The Chandigarh Golf Club also features on the list with significant dues. These entities failed to clear their dues during the April–May rebate period and now face a 25% penalty on the total amount, along with 12% annual interest. The MC has already revised the tax figures to include these charges. Meanwhile, the MC has collected over Rs 75 crore so far this financial year — Rs 48 crore from commercial properties and Rs 27 crore from residential ones. Over 850 notices have been issued to residential defaulters (Rs 11 crore dues), and 600+ notices to commercial defaulters (Rs 6.5 crore dues). **Box: Some of the top govt tax defaulters in MC's record.** Government Entity-----------------------------Tax arrears (amount approximate) 1: Panjab University-------------------------68.85 crore 2: PGI-------------------------------------------14.00 crore 3: Chandigarh administration------------16.26 crore 5: Chandigarh Railway Station----------2.98 crore MSID:: 122818584 413 |
Indian Express
a day ago
- General
- Indian Express
Chandigarh MC says on track to become India's first landfill-free city
With just 59,000 metric tonnes (MT) of waste remaining out of the original 2.4 lakh MT, Municipal Corporation (MC) Chandigarh has claimed that it is on the brink of becoming India's first fully landfill-free city. The MC's ongoing bioremediation of the third and final legacy waste dump at the Dadumajra site is nearing completion, marking a transformative leap in sustainable urban waste management, an MC official said. According to the civic body, initiated on January 25, the project has already processed 70–75 per cent of the legacy waste, overcoming major hurdles posed by the rainy season, which brought over 45 rain-hit days in the past six months, each stalling operations for more than two days. Despite this, it significantly scaled up its efforts — deploying 15 to 20 times more machinery and manpower, and operating in dual shifts with support from two major public sector undertakings (PSUs) and the existing agency. According to a report released on July 21 at 5 pm, only 59,000 metric tonnes of legacy waste now remain at the site. Officials say this final bioremediation phase not only ends the city's dependency on landfills but also positions Chandigarh as a national model of circular waste economy and sustainable governance. Municipal Commissioner Amit Kumar called the development a landmark achievement, a 'declaration of Chandigarh's commitment to smart, sustainable urban growth'. The project has also addressed complex challenges such as leachate control, fire safety, radiological assessment, and environmental compliance under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs' Star Rating Protocol for garbage-free cities.
