SHILLONG: UDP legislator Paul Lyngdoh has expressed concern over the lack of proper waste management in the city.
“It is painful to see such a filthy condition of the city. The present status of the city is due to the lack of an organized and well planned garbage management system,” Lyngdoh said while moving his cut motion in the Assembly on Monday.
Recalling how Shillong was made the capital of undivided Assam during 1864 owing to its greenery and unique beauty, the UDP legislator said that it was time for the Urban Affairs Department to put in place a clear cut and strong policy to restore the past glory of Shillong and adopt new mechanisms to cope with the present growth of the city.
While pressing on the need to adopt an out-of-the-box approach, the legislator suggested that the department could consider the option of inviting private players to assist in the garbage management.
“The agreement with the private players can be made as an economic venture. The private players can help in converting the garbage into compost,” Lyngdoh said.
He said that the department could also think in terms of enforcing the various provisions of law to develop a sense of responsibility among the citizens to contribute towards the cleanliness of the city.
Meanwhile, Lyngdoh suggested that the department should develop a hawker zone to deal with the problem of regulating hawkers. “We know that the staffs of the Shillong Municipal Board (SMB) are facing a huge problem to regulate the hawkers. The best option is to shift these hawkers to a permanent place,” the UDP legislator said.
While questioning the fate of the various ongoing schemes under JNNURM scheme, following the Central Government’s plan to wind up this scheme, Lyngdoh said, specifically referring to the buses and maxi cab which are funded under JNNURM, the department should take measures to ensure that these buses and maxi cabs do not add to the burden to the Government. The UDP legislator said that the department should issue a clear cut directive to private players who are helping to run these buses and maxi cab on Private Public Partnership (PPP) mode to sustain the revenue generation.
Agreeing with Lyngdoh, Urban Affairs Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh said that a lot needed to be done to improve the cleanliness of the Shillong city. The minister added that there is a need to locate for a new land filled site for the dumping of the garbage. She also added that the department is also facing difficulty to develop a hawker’s zone since they cannot locate a space for the purpose.