Kochi corporation does a patch-up job before NGT visit

Kochi: The entrance gate wore a bright blue colour and sides of the road to the waste treatment plant sported a green look. The entire premises were clean, the stink minimal. Welcome to the Brahmapuram waste treatment plant that is being readied for the advocate commission visit that was ordered by the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
"There was prior information that the NGT commission would visit the plant on Tuesday.So, we were directed to clean the entrance areas, paint the gates and plant trees and saplings. The cleaning work continued till Tuesday morning," said a sanitation worker attached to the corporation on condition of anonymity.
What the worker said was evident. Palms of the security guard at the entrance had turned blue as the paint had not dried and the 'plants' that were planted on Monday had fresh soil around them.
"It was a farce. Civic authorities buried unsegregated waste hours before the commission reached the spot. Though we tried to speak to Ekalingam who heads the commission, he was not cooperative. We also requested him to visit the Kadambrayar River that has been contaminated by the leachate from the plant. However, he was not ready," said residents who were waiting outside the plant to interact with the advocate commission.
Ekalingam visited the Brahmapuram waste treatment plant following public complaints that the waste brought to the plant was not being treated scientifically.
Mayor Soumini Jain, deputy mayor TJ Vinod, health standing committee chairperson VK Minimol and senior administrative officers accompanied the commission.
At the same time, Minimol said that the advocate commission was fully satisfied with the functioning of the plant. "He visited the waste treatment plant, plastic crushing unit and later the segregation points at Panampilly Nagar and Giri Nagar. He told us not to increase the intake of waste to the plant since the plant is functioning at its full capacity. He wanted us to increase the intake only when a new plant was ready," she said.
Minimol added that the commission would visit more segregation points on Wednesday apart from visiting various locations in the city to understand the waste collection methods followed here.
"The residents were demanding the commission to visit the Kadambrayar River. However, the commission rejected the demand saying that he was not directed to do so. When they said the plant premises was stinking badly, commission advised them to stop producing waste, which irked the assembled crowd. They also alleged that the commission was only supporting the civic body to run an unscientific plant," said a civil police officer on duty at the spot.