Bhubaneswar: The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has expanded its waste management and urban cleanliness initiatives by taking responsibility for transporting dry waste from 31 Gram Panchayats in four blocks to its designated Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs). The civic body has also awarded a three-year contract for mechanised sweeping and allied cleaning of major roads under Package-III at an annual cost of nearly Rs 9.47 crore.
Housing and Urban Development Minister Krushna Chandra Mahapatra flagged off the collection of dry waste from 32 GPs Friday at Gangotri Nagar in Bhubaneswar in the presence of BMC Mayor Sulochana Das and other dignitaries. Mahapatra said that the initiatives aim to strengthen scientific waste management in areas surrounding Bhubaneswar and improve cleanliness along major arterial and high-density roads within the city.
Under the Odisha government’s Rural-Urban Convergence initiative, 31 Gram Panchayats in Bhubaneswar, Jatani, Balipatna and Balianta blocks have been tagged with BMC for the transportation and processing of dry waste. Of the 31 Gram Panchayats, 20 are in Bhubaneswar block, five in Jatani, three in Balipatna and three in Balianta.
BMC deployed seven light commercial vehicles (LCVs) to collect dry waste from designated points in these Gram Panchayats and transport it to its existing MRFs. The facilities will undertake further segregation, material recovery and recycling. Mayor Sulochana Das said, “The arrangement is expected to facilitate the systematic handling of recyclable waste generated in the adjoining rural areas by utilising BMC’s existing waste management infrastructure, reducing the risk of unmanaged disposal. In a parallel initiative, BMC has awarded the Package-III contract for mechanised sweeping and allied cleaning of major roads to M/s Jagruti Welfare Organisation.
The civic body has issued the Letter of Award (LOA) for a period of three years. The annual operating cost of the contract is Rs 9,47,41,986. The tender for Package-III was re-invited with modified eligibility conditions after limited participation in an earlier bidding process. The revised conditions were intended to encourage wider participation and healthy competition. The sweeping programme will cover several important stretches across Bhubaneswar, including Saptasatee Golei Chowk–Lingipur Square via Tankapani Sai Temple Road, Kalpana Square–Rasulgarh Square, Vani Vihar–Rajmahal Square along Janpath, Acharya Vihar–Airport Square and Garage Square–Samantrapur Road.
Other stretches include Rabi Talkies–Tankapani Sai Temple Road, Airport Square Ganga Nagar–Airport Circle, Sisubhawan Square–Capital Hospital Square, AG Square Raj Bhawan–Rajmahal, PMG Master Canteen–Ram Mandir, Mausima Square–Nageswar Tangi–Rabi Talkies, Forest Park–Airport Square and Maharshi College Chowk–Bomikhal, along with Patel Marg and other important connecting roads.
The scope of work includes daily mechanical sweeping using 6-cubic-metre road sweepers, wall-to-wall cleaning of footpaths, medians, kerbs and road shoulders, and cleaning around bus shelters and street furniture. The agency will also undertake bush cutting and remove posters and banners from roadside infrastructure. GPS-enabled monitoring and camera-based supervision have been incorporated to monitor operations.
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