SHILLONG: UDP legislator Paul Lyngdoh on Wednesday questioned a written reply by Urban and Municipal Affairs Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh in the Assembly on the issue of garbage menace in the city after she read out that “it is not a fact that huge garbage is accumulating throughout all the roads in Shillong city”.
During Question Hour, Paul Lyngdoh said a huge amount of garbage is left unattended for days altogether in almost all the areas of the city and it is a visual assault.
He wanted the intervention of the department in this regard.
Paul also asked the Minister to take a round of the city in the morning and evening hours to understand the gravity of the matter.
In her reply, the Minister admitted to certain problems associated with garbage management.
She, however, asserted that necessary steps were being taken for effective garbage management and sought the cooperation of the legislators to join together to fight the menace.
“Let us join hands together to check in the morning and evening time to ensure that Shillong is free from garbage menace,” the Minister said.
To a supplementary question, the Minister said that the problem of garbage management in the areas from Dreamland to Motphran was due to the presence of a large number of street vendors.
She added that the Street Vendor’s Act, 2014, will be implemented to regulate garbage dumping.
She also said the garbage collection is a continuing process and was the priority area of the Urban Affairs department.
To a question on legal measures, the Minister replied that littering is banned as per Throwing of low intensity plastic bag Act, 2002 as amended in 2004.
The Minister said that in her constituency, some people had been booked based on the penal provisions of the Act.
