End to uncertainty over waste movement in Kozhikode

Non bio-degradable waste will now be shifted to the material collection facility at West Hill

The uncertainty over the movement of non-biodegradable waste in the city has ended, with the Kozhikode Corporation signing a pact with Konaris Anvanced Polymers to segregate it.

Non-biodegradable waste collected by Haritha Karma Sena (HKS) members from various parts of the city used to be taken to the material collection facility (MCF) at Njeliyanparamba. But the facility is not operational now, as the ground is being cleared for the construction of the proposed waste-to-energy (WTE) plant. Niravu Waste Management is in charge of clearing legacy waste from the ground.

As the corporation's MCF, run by Konaris at West Hill, was specifically meant to handle waste collected from streets and not from houses and other establishments, HKS had no space to move waste collected by it, resulting in a waste movement crisis in the city. As a result, waste collection from houses has been in a limbo. What was collected remained abandoned on roadsides waiting to be taken to the MCFs of recycling plants.

The corporation council on Friday approved the new agreement between the corporation and Konaris Advanced Polymers. With this, non-biodegradable waste collected from houses and other establishments too can now be taken to the West Hill MCF. Based on the new agreement, Konaris is to pay the corporation ₹4 per kg of recyclable plastic, while the corporation is to pay them ₹1.50 per kg of non-recyclable plastic. Besides, Konaris need not pay the civic body any rent for the recycling plant at West Hill until the agreement is in effect. At present, Konaris is paying the corporation ₹51,000 and GST per month.