The Chennai Corporation has approved the revised draft of the Corporation of Chennai Solid Waste Management Bylaws 2019. The bylaws apply to all residents, institutions and commercial waste generators and ensure effective waste management. They specify the duties of waste generators and Corporation officials as well as the penalties for violations.
The bylaws state that the Corporation will abandon the practice of using landfills and dumping of mixed waste and instead set up a sanitary landfill. According to the bylaws, residents found burning garbage in their own premises will have to pay a fine of ₹500. Shopkeepers who burn garbage will have a higher fine of ₹2,000. Any resident who dumps garbage in a public place and burns it will have to pay a fine of ₹1,000. The fine for those who dump construction debris in a public place will be ₹2,000-₹5,000.
The bylaws state that it shall be the responsibility of owners of pets to clean up excrement. Organisers of a public gathering will be fined ₹5,000 for failure to clean up the area within 12 hours of the meeting. The fines for repeat violators will be doubled. The bylaws have also included user charges for solid waste management in the city.
Residents with a built up area of less than 500 sq. ft. will have to pay user charges of ₹10 per month for solid waste management. Residents with homes with built up area of more than 2,400 sq ft will have to pay ₹100 per month as user charges. The user charges is ₹50 per month for houses with build up area of 1200 sq ft -2400 sq ft. Houses with built up area of 500 sq ft - 1200 sq ft will attract user charges of ₹25 per month. Star hotels would have to pay ₹3000 - ₹5000 per month as user charges.
Places of worship would have to pay ₹500 per month, schools ₹1,500 per month and colleges ₹3000 per month. The civic body will also provide training for waste-pickers and collectors.
