Guwahati’s permanent freshwater lake, the Deepor Beel, home to both resident and migratory birds is now harbouring an unwelcome tenant – Municipal garbage. The trash is choking the water body along with all of the bio-diversity it harbours. Despite the NGT’s intervention, illegal garbage dumping is still on at the Beel. In addition, rampant construction activity around the lake is responsible for severing the links it had with the Brahmaputra nearby, triggering a whole new issue for fishermen and farmers around.   

 

The Lucknow Municipal Corporation has decided to impose a fine of Rs. 500 on any person found spitting or urinating in public spaces. But, the real challenge is in implementing this rule as most of the city’s public and community toilets lie in a state of disrepair. The Corporation releases Rs 1.5crore annually to carry out repairs works and maintain all 240 toilets; but the amount has been found to be insufficient by sanitary administration staff and private contractors responsible for the toilets’ upkeep.

 

The Union Government has notified the country's first ever Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules to ensure recycling and proper disposal of such waste. Large waste generators will now have to submit waste management plans in advance to local administration. The rules will be implemented by local civic authorities and is expected to reduce pressure on fresh resources in addition to helping tackle dust-triggered air pollution.

 

Varanasi is expected to roll out mechanised waste collection and transport in few wards on a pilot basis to tackle the city’s growing solid waste problem. The Parliamentary Constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi fared rather poorly in the latest edition of the Swachh Survekshan survey conducted to assess the cleanliness of cities across the country. It was ranked 65 among the 73 surveyed cities.

 

Despite the blanket ban of manual scavenging in the state of Tamil Nadu, the practice seems to continue on unabated. In yet another tragic repetition, a 44-year-old manual scavenger lost his life due to asphyxiation while cleaning the septic tank of a house in the outskirts of Chennai city. This is the third such incident in the city in the last four months.