The Municipal Corporation Chandigarh's (MCC) plan for plan for segregation of garbage at source and its door-to-door collection has hit a roadblock with city's resident welfare associations opposing the move over the collection charges to be paid by residents.
The Federation of Sectors Welfare Associations, ( FOSWAC), representing 71 residents welfare associations, allege the MCC has unilaterally fixed the rates of door-to-door collection of garbage.
"The rates fixed by the MCC for collection of garbage are two to three times higher than the existing rates for the same. So all the resident welfare associations are opposed to it. Also, the whole process is unorganised as no detailed statistics have been provided," the chairman, FOSWAC, Baljinder Bittu, said.
''Municipal Corporation claims of having employed nearly 4,500 people for garbage collection which is just a virtual number as in reality the number is just 700 to 800. At present the rates being charged for garbage collection are Rs 55 for a 10 Marla house, Rs 65 from a one Kanaal and Rs 75 from a two kanaal house. But the minimum charge being decided by corporation under the new scheme (two dustbin) is about Rs 100 per house. MCC has no right under any law to fix the high rates of garbage collection by private collectors,'' he added.
The two bin waste management scheme was launched in June by MCC. Under it, 10,000 green and blue dustbins of 12 litre capacity are to be distributed and the collection of garbage was to be carried out from door-to-door by private companies hired for the job by the MCC.
The president of Resident Welfare Association (RWA), Sector-47, Mohan Rattan, said earlier residents were having one-to-one interaction with the garbage collectors, but now nobody knows the garbage collectors (hired for the job by the private company) or their timing of collection.
The FOSWAC plans to meet the Chandigarh Administrator regarding the issue. The Mayor, Asha Kumari Jaswal, said the new scheme will be implemented and definitely prove beneficial for residents and workers as their monthly income will go up.
"Earlier the resident welfare associations had supported the scheme but now they are opposing it which is surprising. At present, garbage collectors get about Rs 4,400 per month for the job which is not helping in the welfare of the workers," she told The Statesman.