Mass cleaning to resume along banks of Cooum

POLLUTED: Localities near the bridges across the Cooum river will be the focus of the cleaning drive.

As garbage has started piling up along the banks of the Cooum, the Chennai Corporation is planning to resume mass cleaning operations on a monthly basis.

The decision follows a recent recommendation of the Chennai River Restoration Trust (CRRT). The civic body undertook a mass cleaning programme last year and removed 835 tonnes of solid waste dumped along the river. However, garbage is continuously being dumped and waste started piling up as cleaning operations on the banks remained sporadic.

The Cooum flows through the zones of Kilpauk, Nungambakkam and Triplicane for a length of 16 km. Localities near the bridges across the river would be the focus of the cleaning drive as a chunk of the garbage is being dumped in such areas. More tricycles and compactor bins are likely to be used to facilitate collection of solid waste in the localities.

The Corporation has directed officials of the three zones to resume the massive cleaning operations this month and continue it every month.

Garbage is being dumped in many localities along the 6.5-km stretch in the Kilpauk zone and the 2.9-km-long stretch in Nungambakkam zone and the stretch in Triplicane. Sporadic cleaning operations have already begun on some stretches now.

Last year, the civic body organised campaigns to create awareness among 70,000 residents living along the Cooum in the three zones. More than 55 tonnes of garbage is being collected by the civic body every day in localities along the river, but many of the residents are continuing to pollute the river.