Over 60% of 83,010 shops in Chennai city failed to segregate solid waste

Chennai Corporation advises shops to stop dumping of waste along roads and footpaths ahead of the northeast monsoon, as many drains get clogged by the waste

Greater Chennai Corporation has warned that it will levy a fine of ₹500 for shopkeepers who dump garbage along the roads and footpaths in the 15 zones of the city.

According to data compiled by the Chennai Corporation, only 40% of the 83,010 shops in the city have followed the Solid Waste Management Bylaws 2019 and placed two bins for collection of biodegradable waste and non-biodegradable waste. More than 60% of the shops in the 15 zones of the city have not installed two separate bins for proper disposal of solid waste. Many of the 50,000 shops without two bins have been reportedly dumping waste on the roads and footpaths. As a number of stormwater drains along 471 bus route roads and 40,000 streets have been clogged by the waste dumped from the shops, the civic body has advised traders to stop dumping of waste on the roads and footpaths, ahead of the onset of the northeast monsoon.

Corporation workers have cleared debris that clogged the drains in many areas ahead of the monsoon. All the shops have been advised to place two bins for disposal of biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste. Conservancy workers will visit the shops every day for collection of segregated waste in two bins. The civic body collects 5,200 tonnes of waste from 15 zones of the city every day. Resource recovery centres have been developed by the Chennai Corporation for segregating waste for processing. 

Bio CNG has also been generated by processing of biodegradable waste. Plastic bales from the city’s waste have been sent to the cement industry. In 2019, the civic body announced that it would stop dumping of municipal solid waste in dumpyards located in Perungudi and Kodungaiyur by 2020. But the initiatives for decentralised waste processing had failed owing to the pandemic.