The Kozhikode Corporation Council on Thursday decided to levy ₹38.85 lakh as fine from the waste management company Zonta Infratech Private Ltd. and extended the contract given to it to remove legacy waste from the civic body’s waste dumping yard at Njeliyanparamba in the city amid objections raised by members from the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
While the UDF members walked out of the meeting in protest after tearing up a copy of the day’s agenda, those belonging to the BJP held a banner alleging corruption in the deal, walked up to Mayor Beena Philp’s chair and raised slogans against extension of the contract as the chair declared the listed items passed. The Corporation had engaged the company in December 2019 and the contract had been renewed at least four times.
The meeting began in the afternoon with the Mayor informing the council the proposal to extend the contract as per the decisions taken at an all-party meeting held on March 24. Ms. Philip pointed out that the company had agreed to complete all the pending works by April 30, subject to certain conditions. The bio-mining and bio-capping of the waste should be completed 30 days after starting the work. The company would have to pay a fine to get the contract extended. A technical panel would be formed to monitor the works. If the company fails to take into view the proposals of the panel, the agreement would be cancelled. The company would have to bear the responsibility of the legal action on the corporation, if any, to be pronounced by the National Green Tribunal for the company’s failure to get the works done on time. Zonta Infratech would also have to remove the refuse-derived fuel from the premises of the dumping yard in a month.
Opposition leader and UDF member K.C. Shobitha questioned the provisions in the contract, wondering how the company could complete the works in a month which they could not do in four years. She alleged that the current proposal was just another ploy to release more funds to it. She demanded that the deal with the company be cancelled and the corporation reclaim the over 12 acres handed over to the Kerala State Industrial Corporation, which chose the firm for the project. Ms. Shobitha also sought Zonta Infratech to be blacklisted. Moideen Koya of the Indian Union Muslim League also opposed the deal. Navya Haridas and T. Reneesh, BJP members, claimed that the work would never get completed in a month. Later, though the ruling party members such as M.C. Anil Kumar and S. Jayasree tried to justify the proposal to extend the contract, both the UDF and BJP members objected to it.
The UDF members walked out thereafter. Deputy Mayor C.P. Musafar Ahammed later pointed out that none of the Opposition members, who were raising a hue and cry now, had objected to the extension of the time period to the company by the council earlier.
