Manpower crisis and inadequate equipment have been hindering waste management by the Chittagong City Corporation.
According to the conservancy department of the corporation, the port city, inhabited by about 50 lakh people, on an average produces 1,200 tonnes of waste every day.
Of the total amount of garbage, 300 tonnes is collected by the street children as scraps of different household utensil while the city corporation is to handle the rest amount with its existing manpower and equipment.
There are a total of 78 containers and 1,300 concrete dustbins all over the city, and to clean the garbage of the dustbins and containers, the conservancy department has 70 mini trucks, 13 container carriers and 2,000 conservancy workers.
Admitting the manpower and equipment crisis, Shafiqul Mannan Siddiqui, chief conservancy officer the city corporation, told New Age that the department needed at least 100 trucks, 20 container carriers and 3,000 workers to carry out the job properly.
The conservancy department recently got 12 trucks and four container carriers, informed the corporation sources, adding that the department would get 10 more trucks soon.
There were earlier two dumping grounds in the city — one at Halishahar and the other at Roufabad. But, the latter was closed as it started overflowing with garbage.
There is also a plan afoot to set up another dumping ground at Fateyabad, they said.
Urging the city dwellers to dump domestic waste into dustbins before 8:00am and after 4:00pm, the chief conservancy officer said most of the city dwellers dump their household waste throughout the day. ‘So, we are compelled to work in three shifts,’ he said.
It is not possible to maintain total cleanliness unless and until the city dwellers were aware of waste management.
Stressing the need for training for more conservancy workers, Shafiqul said, ‘I myself have no training, let alone my other subordinate colleagues. But training is essential to be able to handle the city waste management more efficiently.’
Courtesy of New Age
