Title - Section 144 invoked to rid State Capital of garbage

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM :  District administration in Thiruvananthapuram has clamped prohibitory orders within city limits for the purpose of ensuring smooth movement of vehicles carrying garbage.Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code was invoked on Saturday to defuse a potential garbage crisis fuelled on by monsoon rains.Garbage-laden trucks with police escort have started plying to designated places for dumping, which saw only muffled protests in view of the possibility of summary arrests.The prohibitory orders will be in force for a month, and protesters have been warned against causing hindrance to the movement of trucks.While issuing the order, the district collector clarified that any act in violation would amount to a non-bailable offence and would be proceeded with as such.The secretary of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation has been directed to put up surveillance cameras to book offenders.The district collector is scheduled to meet with concerned officials of the corporation to draw up an action plan to move garbage and prevent an outbreak of infectious diseases.

FILLER MATERIAL
Meanwhile, the garbage being moved out of the city is being used as filler material for purposes of construction of a railway platform at Kochuveli near here.Kochuveli is being developed as a satellite station under Thiruvananthapuram Central, and has been witnessing development activity for sometime now.The ‘filling' process had to be halted earlier after local residents protested the movement of garbage trucks, citing a health hazard.But the district administration and the city corporation took cover under the prohibitory orders to get going on a war-footing.

‘TREATED' GARBAGE
But they have assured the local residents that the garbage has been ‘treated' adequately to prevent any inconvenience to them.The railways have, in fact, requested the city corporation for supply of at least 7,000 tonnes of garbage for platform construction at varied stations.In this context, the corporation has decided to move some loads to the rural Murukkumpuzha railway station too.