Shimla MC to collect garbage from bins installed in vehicles

To keep Shimla clean and litter-free, the Municipal Corporation has decided to collect garbage from local and tourist vehicles in the town.

The civic body plans to set up a garbage collection centre in Tutikandi locality, where the Interstate Bus Terminus is located. The garbage from collection centre will be taken to disposal plant at Bharyal.

Municipal Commissioner Bhupender Kumar Attri said a proposal was being prepared and details of tourist vehicles were also being collected. “Recently, the state government had made it mandatory for all commercial vehicles to keep dustbins. Until now, there was no proper system in place to dispose of this waste. The new initiative will not only improve cleanliness in Shimla, but will also help raise environmental awareness among the tourists,” he said.

As per the corporation, even as it collects garbage from households under its jurisdiction, heaps of garbage can be seen in the open, mainly on the roadside and at parking lots in the town.

The officials stated that heaps of garbage have been noticed on the slopes and roadside on the Taradevi to Shimla stretch of the National Highway 5. It has also been noticed that garbage is dumped by people from their vehicles — mainly tourist vehicles — on the roadside.

The corporation also plans to introduce a nominal fee for collecting garbage from vehicles.