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Wednesday, 19 April 2017 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The solid waste management crisis in the country took a fresh turn yesterday when residents from Kotikawatta protested against the dumping of garbage in the area.
Authorities reassumed dumping waste collected from Colombo in Kotikawatta yesterday, after the Meethotamulla garbage dump tragedy. However, protests by the community in the area led the Colombo Municipal Council authorities to abandon the idea. The residents of the Kotikawatta claimed that the Government had violated the ethics of not dumping garbage in their area even after the recent Meethotamulla tragedy. They further claimed that the relevant authorities had already forgotten the negative impact of dumping garbage close to any residential area even after it had become a crisis for the entire country.
The community burned tires in protest of the decision to dump garbage in Kotikawatta. The Colombo-Awissawella low level road was closed for nearly one hour during the tense situation. However, Wellampitiya Police officers, led by Officer-in-Charge Sampath Sanjeewa and representatives of the Kotikawatta Pradeshiya Saba, negotiated with protesters and convinced them to disperse.
Wellampitiya Police sources said that the protesters agreed to disband after local government members and the Police promised to deploy police around the garbage dump in Kotikawatta to prevent any outside party dumping garbage there.
Further, the officers of the Kotikawatta Pradeshiya Saba pledged to call a meeting at the Kotikawatta Nagarukkarama Temple this afternoon with residents to discuss possible action to remove the dumped garbage from Kotikawatta.
Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) Commissioner V.K. Anura confirmed to Daily FT that the solid garbage matter of the Colombo area would be resolved before noon today. However, he refused to reveal the area to which they are planning to relocate the garbage.
Anura stressed that the garbage problem had hurt the area. He said the CMC has the supreme authority to make a decision on where the solid garbage should be moved to. (CG)
The military personnel engaged in search and rescue work at the site of the Meethotamulla garbage collapse will shift their primary focus to clearing up the rubble from today, Army Spokesman Brigadier A.W.M.P Roshan Seneviratne told Daily FT.
He said the security forces had no intention of giving up the rescue mission and they would continue but hopes of finding survivors was slim as the fourth day of search operations came to an end. However, he said around 1,100 soldiers will be deployed to clear debris from the area since that was also a priority at the moment.
According to Seneviratne, the death toll has risen to 32 from 30 after one body was recovered last morning and another injured person who was undergoing medical treatment died in hospital last afternoon.
However, People’s Movement against the Meethotamulla Garbage Dump Convener Nuwan Bopage said that “the death toll has increased to 33 today since three bodies, including two females and one male, have been exhumed by soldiers. A body of a woman was also recovered.” (CG)
