Misuse of twin bins continues to worry Kozhikode Corporation

It was a rush of pride that Manjima R.V., a homemaker from Elathur, felt as she saw the twin waste bins set up all along major roads in Kozhikode city for the first time. But her pride was short-lived as she found bags of waste dumped all around one such bin in the heart of the city. “These bins look so classy and give a character to its surroundings. But the misuse defeats the purpose,” she lamented.

The Kozhikode Corporation has set up twin steel bins all across the city to keep roads clean and encourage commuters to deposit minor waste such as toffee or biscuit wrappers promptly in the bins. But it has turned out to be a headache for the civic body in some parts of the city as people tend to deposit their household waste, including food and diapers, in and around the bins.

“We caught a few people red-handed and fined them. Our cleaning staff clears the bins promptly in the morning. But bags of waste appear around them within hours,” said S. Jayasree, health standing committee chairperson of the Corporation.

The Corporation has appointed one extra employee in every health circle to ensure that the bins are cleared promptly. Besides, there are plans to absorb around 100 more people into the force.

Ms. Jayasree said the Haritha Mitram mobile application that enabled the collection of household waste had 95% coverage in the city, and that most households cooperated with the Haritha Karma Sena. However, there are exceptions. “We can educate only those who are unaware of the services we provide. This misuse of bins seems to be a deliberate mischief,” she added.

She complained that the steel lids of the bins had been forcefully removed in some places. “Depositing diapers and medical waste in the bins is a source of discomfort for cleaning workers. We have the ‘Aakri’ mobile application for efficient disposal of biomedical waste, including diapers and sanitary napkins, besides tubes and syringes. For those who cannot afford the services of the app, the Corporation supports them financially,” she added.

Ms. Jayasree said the extra effort being put in for waste management due to the misuse of the bins was draining the Corporation of valuable funds and manpower that could have been put to positive use.