The Kerala High Court on Tuesday asked the Secretary, Municipal Corporation of Kochi to file a status report and to inform the court of the immediate steps it will take for implementation of solid waste management and handling rules in view of fire at Brahmapuram waste plant in Kochi.
Kochi,UPDATED: Mar 8, 2023 16:39 IST
A fire broke out at Brahmapuram waste plant in Kochi last week. (Photo: India Today)
By Shilpa Nair: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday asked the Secretary, Municipal Corporation of Kochi to file a status report and to inform the court of the immediate steps it will take for implementation of the solid waste management and handling rules.
The court sought the report in connection to the fire at Brahmapuram solid waste management plant.
A division bench of Justice S.V. Bhatti and Justice Basant Balaji said, “Kerala claims to be number 1 in literacy in the centre. This bench would like to know whether the state would like to be number 1 in protecting the environment and implementing solid waste management handling rules. This cannot be accomplished by a parcel of accomplishments either in a corporation or a municipality or a gram panchayat. There are enough number of water bodies in Kerala and no one is listening to their plight. All water bodies are being converted into dump sites. This can be prevented when all the local authorities concerned with protecting the water bodies are issued proper directions.”
The court asked the Chairman of PCB, the Secretary of Kochi civic body and the district collector to be present for the next hearing.
Meanwhile, efforts are on to put out a fire that broke out at Brahmapuram waste plant in Kochi last week. As per the authorities, the fire is under control and will be doused fully soon. The fire has led to a toxic smoke cover over certain areas in Kochi.
