NOIDA mulls imposition of cess for clean city

Noida authority is mulling a proposal to impose Swachh cess on bulk garbage producers including hotels, restaurants and industries. The authority has started consultation with various stake holders to implement schemes to minimise air pollution in the city.

“The proposal is at very nascent stage. We are making a draft proposal to be put up for consideration in the upcoming board meeting of the authority. After which it will be sent to Lucknow for the approval of the UP Government. Funds collected as cess will be spent on keeping the city clean,” said Saumya Srivastava, DCEO of the Noida authority. On Saturday, the authority held a meeting with Residents’ Welfare Associations (RWAs) and social activists at the Indira Kala Kendra auditorium in Sector 6. In the consultation programme the representatives and social activists were asked to share their ideas to make a comprehensive plan for keeping Noida clean and for reducing the pollution level. Around 200 RWA office bearers attended the meet held to prepare a blueprint to fight the rising pollution. It’s also important to mention that the district administration of Gautam Budh Nagar had recently issued guidelines regarding rotational weekly holidays in markets, operational hours for factories and schools to minimise air pollution in the city.

“Noida authority workers clean roads, green belts and other public areas around 6 am whereas residents wake up around 8 am and throw garbage in bins. As a result, the waste lies there till the next day. Better coordination is the need of the hour to clean Noida,” said Keshav Sharma, an  RWA member.