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Waste management law from June 1

KOCHI: Come June 1, Kochi city will have a legal framework to govern the entire gamut of the solid waste management process.

The bylaw, while defining the role of the civic authorities as well as residents, has also provided penal provisions for violations.

Kochi is the first city in the State to enact such a bylaw for governing the management of municipal solid waste.

Kochi has moved to the sophisticated way of treatment of the solid waste, leaving behind the crude practice of dumping it at landfills. The process of collection, transport and treatment needs to be systemised for the effective treatment of waste and the bylaw will provide the necessary legal guideline for the process, said civic authorities.

The penal provisions of the bylaw would act as a deterrent to the residents as well as visitors to the city, who throw waste around. The people should realise that they also have a responsibility in keeping the city clean, said Kochi Mayor Mercy Williams.

More than penalising the people, the provisions of the law are expected to persuade them to discontinue the practice of dumping waste in Kochi city. The people should move to responsible citizenship and realise that open dumping of waste is a disgraceful act, Ms. Williams said. Residents of the city have been following for decades the practice of throwing waste in public places. As the city takes to the modern way of garbage treatment, the attitude of the residents should also change. The bylaw is expected to bring in such attitudinal changes in the minds of the residents, said Mini Antony, secretary of the Kochi Corporation.

The Corporation will seek the support of the police in patrolling the streets and preventing open dumping of waste. Citizens’ squads will also be pressed into action for ensuring that waste is disposed of in a systematic way, Ms. Williams said.

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