Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:
The Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation (CSMC) has decided to revise the old terms and conditions in appointing a new bio-medical waste contractor through a tender process.
Earlier, the CSMC had discontinued the 20-year-old service of Nashik-based Watergrace Company.
The municipal commissioner G Sreekanth held a meeting in this regard on Monday. He instructed the solidwaste management section saying that the CSMC will not mind if the aspiring contractor (responding to the tender) does not pay any royalty, but there should be conditions that the contractor should have its own land to set up the plant and the disposal plant should also be erected by himself on his own expense.
It may be noted that the 20-yr-old contract ended in January, but few civic officers recommended continuing his service for 20 years without any tender process.
In reality the old company did not have scientific machinery to dispose of the bio-medical waste, except one boiler. Besides, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) had also served notices to Watergrace Co. as well as the municipal corporation many times in the past. This was the reality then also the extension of 20 more years was granted. When the issue was raised in the media and drew criticism the civic administration came on backfoot and decided to invite fresh tender.
According to sources, “The civic chief had directed the officers to conduct spot inspection before recommending extension to the company. The officers recommended extension. Relying on their report tabled before him, the civic chief had granted an extension of 20 years. He later realised about the wrong report. Now the question arises what action he will be taking against the officers involved in the wrong act and who are the officers to mislead him.