MCB to hire vehicles from JITF for garbage collection

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, April 25

The Municipal Corporation Bathinda (MCB) has planned to hire vehicles (compactor) from JITF company for the door-to-door garbage collection work in the city. The MCB will take over the work from the company from May 1.

Surprisingly, barely a week has left for the MCB to take over this work, but they have not yet signed an agreement with the company as to what rent the MCB would pay to the company. It is learnt that an agreement has been made and would be signed in a few days.

It is learnt that Municipal Corporation Bathinda officials will assign the garbage collection work to around 250 workers of JITF company, who are at present doing this job in the city. As per the MCB plan, these workers will do only this work and they will collect money from residents and would manage their salaries from this on their own.

The decision of door-to-door collection garbage work has taken many by surprise as a few MCB officials are questioning how the Municipal Corporation can manage the work if it is giving everything to the workers.

It is pertinent to mention that in December 2017, after the National Green Tribunal (NGT) passed orders asking the local authorities to provide 500 metric tonnes of garbage at the doorstep of the solid waste management plant located on the Mansa road, JITF company, operating the plant, had given a notice to the Municipal Corporation stating that they would stop the garbage collection work in the city after December 31.

Later, the Municipal Corporation made an appeal to the National Green Tribunal that they should be given some time to make arrangements for taking over the door-to-door garbage collection work in their hand.

The major tussle over this issue is that the entire Bathinda cluster generates around 350 tonnes of garbage daily whereas the National Green Tribunal has directed them to provide 500 tonnes of garbage daily at the plant. Even the transportation of garbage from the nearby councils to the plant is also going to be a tough task.

250 workers of JITF firm to collect garbage 

• It is learnt that MCB officials will assign the garbage collection work to around 250 workers of JITF company, who are at present doing this job in the city.  
• As per the MCB plan, these workers will do only this work and will collect money from residents and would manage their salaries from this on their own.