SHILLONG: A delegation-led by Meghalaya’s Urban Affairs Minister Hamletson Dohling, PHE Minister Samlin Malgniang and Government Chief Whip Agatha K. Sangma visited Alappuzha town in Kerala to understand the unique waste management model.
During the visit, the minister and officials from Meghalaya had consultation and discussion with officials of the Alappuzha Municipal authorities. They also visited different site of the project to get first-hand experience.
Alappuzha model has the distinction and recognition for its successful and sustainable management of solid waste under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), as one of the best across the world.
As per of the ambitious project, Alappuzha Municipal Board established 5000 kitchen bins, 3000 biogas plants, 2800 pipe composting units and 218 aerobic compositing units in the municipal areas by way of which the town was able to take care of 80 percent of its waste produced by a population of 1.74 lakh.
“Kerala’s Alappuzha has a decentralized plan that enables every household to go green and treat domestic biodegradable waste in their own backyards”, said Agatha K. Sangma, while narrating her experience on Sunday.
“We discussed the Alappuzha model for waste management and how to implement it in Meghalaya Municipal areas. On a pilot basis the project would be started in Shillong and Tura soon,” said Hamletson Dohling.
The delegation informed that Meghalaya would focus on waste segregation in all municipal areas. “In 2022, Meghalaya will host the National Games, it will be our target to ensure that we are able to manage our waste and make Meghalaya waste-free as early as possible. We will work on target and deadline to achieve our objective,” Dohling added.