The Nandivaram-Guduvancherry and Acharapakkam town panchayats in Kancheepuram district have received ISO certification from two different certifying agencies.
While Nandivaram-Guduvancherry has received 9001:2008 certification for providing the best of infrastructure facilities and for the maintenance of the Nandivaram-Guduvancherry bus terminus, the Acharapakkam town panchayat has received ISO 14001:2004 for best practices in collection and segregation of solid waste.
The 1.97-acre Guduvancherry bus terminus was upgraded in accordance with norms stipulated by Quest Certification Private Limited, the certifying agency.
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“Representatives of the ministry of trade and industry of the Egypt government had appreciated our efforts recently. Sustained effort is needed to maintain its glory for the next few years for which we need the people’s support,” said P. Kutralingam, executive officer of the town panchayat.
Nandivaram-Guduvancherry’s certification is valid till February 18, 2017. “The certification association will conduct a surveillance audit on February 3, 2015, and again on February 3, 2016,” he said.
In Acharapakkam, Hand in Hand India had started a solid waste management project in April 2012.
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Due to heavy vehicular traffic in the area, those employed for the project, referred to as ‘Green Friends’, found it difficult to commute, and often had to extend their working hours to avoid being caught in traffic.
The local government body, which strongly supports the SWM project, decided to accommodate the additional costs incurred due to the extended working hours.
The Hand in Hand India SWM team then proposed the idea of a biogas unit at the project location. A unit using food waste has now been installed with the support of local authorities. Green Friends collect food waste from nearby hotels and eateries, and feed it into the unit to generate biogas.
“Having seen this changeover, we have conducted a series of inspections before awarding them the certification. Subsequent to the assessment conducted on April 30, the Acharapakkam town panchayat has been found to be operating an environmental management system which complies with the requirements of ISO certification,” said BSCIC certification regional manager, M. Mahesh. The certification would expire on May 9, 2017, and before this, two surveillance audits would be conducted, on April 30, 2015 and 2016, he added.