• Mechanical waste management underway
• Purchasing more equipment by December 2019
• Setting up more STSs for newly added wards
The two City Corporations in Dhaka are set to enhance their waste management capabilities by adding better equipment and setting up more Secondary Transfer Stations (STSs) for the newly added wards to their territories. They are also going to introduce mechanical sweeping system at each areas of the corporation gradually by replacing current manual system, City Corporation authorities concerned said.
More than 6,500 tons of wastes are produced per day in the two city areas, while they have capacity to remove up to 90 percent of it, according to sources. About 3,000 to 3,500 tons of wastes are produced every day at Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) areas while Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) areas produce around 3,500 tons daily, according to waste management departments.
DNCC’s chief waste management officer Captain Manjur Hossain told Bangladesh Post, “More Secondary Transfer Station (STS’s) will be set up at DNCC’s newly added wards. In this regard, we have made a Development Project Proposal (DPP). The proposal includes purchasing different equipments related to waste management, STS’s and other necessary things. We will send it to the ministry by September 15 for final approval.”
He also said, “After getting approval, we will start work to set up STS’s at each newly added ward. We are expected to add more waste carrying-vehicles, dump trucks, hydraulic schopters, payloaders, sweeping cars and other modern vehicles in DNCC’s waste management by December 2019.”
Our waste management system will be mechanical gradually like modern countries, he said, adding that they are already using modern sweeping cars at different areas and will purchase sufficient modern equipments for all wards. Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) has enhanced its waste management capability by adding better equipment and different types of new waste-carrying vehicles.
Currently, about 3,800 cleaners have been working to remove waste from DNCC areas, of which 2,400 are DNCC’s own worker and other 1,400 are working on contract basis. On the other hand, DSCC has enhanced its waste management capability by adding better equipment and different types of new waste-carrying vehicles.
Superintending engineer of waste management department of DSCC, Abu Saleh Md Main Uddin told Bangladesh Post that last year, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) gave 150 waste carrying vehicles to three city corporations, 56 for DSCC, 56 for DNCC and 38 for Chittagong City Corporation.
Apart from this, DSCC purchased four dump trucks, one tire-dozer, three hydraulic schopters and two payloaders at the cost of Tk37.75 crore. The equipments have already been pressed into service, thus enhancing the efficiency of the DSCC waste management system, said Main Uddin.
A statistics of 2016 showed that the DSCC collected and dumped 1,800 to 1,900 tons of waste per day, 66 to 70 percent of the total waste. Now, DSCC collects and dumped on an average 30,000 to 35,000 tons of waste daily, more than 90 percent of the total waste, AHM Abdullah Harun, Executive Engineer of DSCC told Bangladesh Post.
We cannot collect cent percent waste of the corporation as some city dwellers do not dump waste at the certain place, he said, adding, it will be possible if all city dwellers become aware. Moreover, the two city corporation authorities removed more than 35,000 tonnes of waste from cattle slaughtered in three days on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha.
DSCC removed more than 20,000 tonnes while DNCC removed more than 15,000 tonnes of waste till in three days of Eid, which shows that city corporations waste management, said officials. DSCC introduced live monitoring system through social media and its own control system, which helped them to remove waste within the stipulated time.