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Rs 2.5-cr ‘Smart City’ vehicles for waste management left unused
Vehicles purchased under the Smart City initiative for waste management, at a cost of Rs2.50 crore, have been sitting idle at the Vidyanagar pump house and have yet to be handed over to the municipal corporation.
Tumakuru: Vehicles purchased under the Smart City initiative for waste management, at a cost of Rs2.50 crore, have been sitting idle at the Vidyanagar pump house and have yet to be handed over to the municipal corporation.
The city’s waste management issues are growing by the day, with waste collection not keeping up with the rising demand. Roadsides have turned into garbage dumping grounds. Despite municipal workers exerting their best efforts, the waste problem persists. There is a significant shortage of waste collection vehicles, and workers have been urging for more vehicles to tackle the problem. Although 32 new vehicles were purchased under the Smart City project, they are yet to be put into use.
To supplement the existing fleet, the corporation acquired 25 auto tippers, 5 tractors, 1 compactor, and 1 window turner machine. However, these vehicles have been parked at the pump house for the last month, with no progress in completing the necessary registration and handover procedures.
The auto tippers cost Rs 4.19 lakh each, the tractors Rs10 lakh each, the compactor Rs35 lakh, and the window turner Rs44 lakh. The window turner is intended for use at the Ajjagondanahalli waste management unit, where it will help in sorting and processing waste, separating materials such as coconut shells, milk covers, stones, and glass for recycling.
Currently, 98 auto tippers, 32 tractors, and 10 compactors are used to collect waste from households and transport it to the Ajjagondanahalli unit. A total of 470 municipal workers, including waste collectors and auto tipper drivers, are employed under permanent, contract, and outsourced arrangements. More than 100 tons of waste are collected daily across the city. The municipal corporation generates an income of Rs2.5 lakh per month from the sale of recyclable materials.
An RTI worker stated, “Municipal Commissioner B.V. Ashwija is also the Managing Director of the Smart City project. These vehicles should be handed over to the Corporation quickly. They have been parked unused for the past month.” Despite the vehicles being parked for over a month, Smart City officials claim, “The vehicles have just arrived, and the registration process is underway. They will be handed over to the corporation soon.”
This situation is not new; previously purchased vehicles were left unused for extended periods, exposed to the elements. After facing strong opposition, some of these vehicles were distributed to workers. However, they quickly broke down after being put into service. Social activist Rajkumar expressed concern that the new vehicles might face the same fate.
