Title - Garbage issue: Official team to visit Kochuveli

A team of officials from Suchitwa Mission, Corporation and Railways will visit the site at Kochuveli where landfilling of garbage for platform construction was carried out a fortnight back. The decision to allow further transportation of garbage to the site for construction will be taken only after the team’s visit. The decision was taken at a meeting called by Urban Affairs Minister Manjalamkuzhy Ali which was attended by the District Collector, Corporation officials, Suchitwa Mission officials and Railway authorities. ‘’The Corporation is in a helpless situation. We will support the Government in its efforts to tackle the garbage issue. We have entrusted certain officials for coordination work with the Government. I said at the meeting that the Government could talk with them and do the needful,’’ said Mayor K Chandrika after the meeting. The Suchitwa Mission officials said that a final decision to once again transport waste to Kochuveli has not been taken. ‘’The ethicality of the work which has already been carried out there and an assessment of the volume of garbage which would be required for platform construction would be done,’’ said a Suchitwa Mission official. According to Corporation officials, the Government is of the opinion that the garbage should be transported to Kochuveli since there is work left on the platform construction.

However, with the Corporation acting people-friendly by kneeling down before the locals when they protested against the garbage dumping, the Government does not want to appear autocratic. Which is probably why it ise sending a team to pacify the locals and study the circumstances, sources said.

Meanwhile, the locals here are gearing up for a massive protest if the Government plans to dump more garbage in the name of platform construction. Vettucaud councillor Bosco Disilva said that a Janakeeya Samithi has already been formed, a torchlight procession denouncing the move has been taken out and  the residents’ associations and locals are more than alert this time.

‘’We have been facing pollution from all sides - Titanium, English Indian Clays and numerous other industrial units in the area have been polluting our water and air. We can’t endure another one. It is as simple as that. But it seems the Government can keep away from a UDF-led panchayat but not a place where the elected representatives belong to the LDF,’’ said Bosco.