Compost garbage, get 10% property tax rebate

Sandeep Rana

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 25

City residents will get a 10 per cent rebate on property tax if they segregate wet and dry garbage at source and process it through local composting in their respective societies.

Ahead of the nationwide wet and dry garbage segregation and collection scheme, to be launched on World Environment Day on June 5, the local Municipal Corporation has announced that those who compost wet garbage in their society premises will get the rebate. The societies can get a ditch dug or put up a machine for the purpose.

The civic body will share the plan, including the scientific method and literature, with residents regarding the composting process. It has also been decided that there will three prizes -- first, second and third -- for societies that manage and process garbage in an efficient way.

Local composting will save the transport cost and manpower of the civic body. The biodegradable waste can be used for various purposes, including production of biogas, electricity and fertilisers.

The plan was shared by B Purushartha, MC Commissioner, with residents of Sector 48 today at the community centre. The civic body has chosen Sector 48 for launching the new drive in the city.

“Chandigarh has taken the lead in implementing the Centre’s initiative by incorporating the entire city covering 2.5 lakh households. We will distribute two bins — blue for dry garbage and green for wet garbage — in each house. It will take one month to distribute these in the entire city. Collectors will be given free jackets, gloves, masks and caps for the job. They will carry the garbage in two different bins to shift it to different dumping sites. Wet garbage will be sent to the compost site, which is yet to be deicded. However, it can also be compost by residents and they will get a 10 per cent rebate in property tax,” said the MC Commissioner.

The MC will also include shops and institutes. Schools and colleges will have to set up their own compost mechanism. Local councillor Davesh Moudgil said 28 societies of Sector 48 took part in the meeting and agreed to the plan.