The City Corporation is operating Vellalore dump yard in violation of Pollution Control Board norms and without the approval from the Ministry of Urban Development. This came to light in a reply to an RTI filed by MDMK district secretary Eswaran here recently.
The RTI reply revealed that the Coimbatore Corporation did not adhere to the norms set under Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000, and was yet to submit Form II, IV and V of the Rules to Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board.
According to Form II of the Municipal Solid Waste Rules, the municipal authority must furnish an annual report to the District Magistrate or the Deputy Commissioner concerned.
This annual report must be submitted with a copy to the State Board or the Committee by June 30 every year. According to the RTI reply, a copy of which is with Express, this report was never submitted by the Corporation. According to Form V of the Rules, if an accident occurred at any municipal solid waste collection, segregation, storage, processing, treatment and disposal facility or landfill site or during the transportation of such wastes, the municipal authority should report the accident to the Collector or Deputy Commissioner.
Interestingly, between May 2003 and April 18 this year, there had been 45 fire incidents at the Vellalore dump yard. Further, from April 18 to now, there were at least 10 incidents of fire in the dump yard. “The RTI reply reveals that none of these incidents have been formally lodged with the authorities concerned till date in a clear violation of the rules under Form V,” said MDMK District Secretary Easwaran.
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