24 Apr 2019 | 06:12am IST
Six villages, three cities notified for implementing waste management
Se Old Goa, Aldona, Oxel, Navelim, Chicalim and Uguem are the villages and Panjim, Cuncolim and Valpoi are the towns identified for compliance of Solid Waste Management Rules
PANJIM: The State government has notified six villages and three cities as model cities/towns/village panchayats for effective implementation of the provisions of the Solid Waste Management Rules within six months.
In the list of panchayats, Se Old Goa (Tiswadi), Aldona (Bardez), Oxel (Bardez), Navelim (Salcete), Chicalim (Mormugao) and Uguem (Sanguem) have been identified as model panchayats while Corporation of City of Panaji (CCP), Cuncolim Municipal Council and Valpoi Municipal Council are classified under A, B and C class for compliance of the provisions within the stipulated period.
The notification comes in view of directions by the National Green Tribunal on April 10 that government should identify at least three major towns or cities and at least three panchayats in each district as ‘model’ towns to implement the Rules including environmental norms in six months.
“The concerned Village Panchayats of the above mentioned Block shall within a period of six months take all necessary steps to ensure complete compliance of all the provisions of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 and extant directions of the NGT issued in this regard,” the notification issued by Department of Panchayati Raj and Community Service stated.
Whereas the Department of Urban Development said, “The concerned Municipal Corporation/Councils of the above mentioned cities/towns shall within a period of six months, take necessary steps to ensure complete compliance of the provisions of all the Waste Management Rules notified by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and extant directions of the NGT issued in this regard.”
The villages and cities/towns were identified during a State Level Committee meeting held on April 18.
The NGT bench of Chairperson Adarsh Kumar Goel, judicial member K Ramakrishnan and expert member Dr Nagin Nanda had further ruled that the remaining cities, towns and village panchayats may be made fully compliant of environmental norms within one year. Chief Secretary has also been directed to furnish quarterly report to the NGT with first such report to be submitted by July 15, 2019.
The Tribunal also ordered that an estimate of value of environmental degradation and cost of restoration be prepared and compensation be planned and recovered from polluters for environmental restoration and restitution on that basis.
