With most of the select cities in Tamil Nadu preparing in every ways possible for the much anticipated smart cities project, G. Prakash, Commissioner of Municipal Administration (CMA) of the State has said that the State was not in need of ideas pertaining to the solid waste management.
Speaking at a session on Coimbatore Smart City Project, organised in the city on Monday by the Coimbatore Chapter of the German India Round Table, the CMA said that the State had new ideas installed about the management of solid wastes.
“I can confidently say that we have developed enough methods to tackle the issue and are also ready to give expert advice to other countries that are facing the problem,” Prakash pointed out.
The statement has come out despite various claims made by stakeholders questioning the management of solid waste in the State. The resource persons who showcased their projects before the address also pointed out about the issue.
On the contrary, Prakash said that the Western Countries could contribute in other fields such as water management, designing different models of mobility and making the available designs simpler. “We also do not feel encouraged about redevelopment as of now as infrastructure in Indian cities is more complex than others,” said the CMA.
Claiming that in the next fifteen years only recycled water would be used, Prakash pointed out that assistance was invited in waste water recycling to start address the future problem of water scarcity today.
Talking about the setting up of a laboratory in Coimbatore by a German firm, Prakash said that the lab would deal with the urban needs of the Corporation and cater to various requirements. “We would be happy if other German organisations joined the project and contribute as a unit,” he said adding that proposals should be confirmed on papers rather than being mere presentations.
Briefing media persons after the event, Prakash opined that the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation was not in need of solar powered street lights as the LED lights that were installed had reduced the power consumption upto 50 per cent.
He also said that the 24*7 drinking water supply would begin in December once every house is fitted with water meter adding that integration of city lakes was also given major importance.
Earlier, members from the German community Christina Gresser amd Eva Walter, Engineers and Architects and Founder Members of IGSI from Germany presented the Smart City Toolkit for Coimbatore. They discussed various focus points including affordable living, social housing, utilising abandoned industrial sites for technical constructions, changing lifestyle and transportation and using the urban space effectively.
Marcus Jeutner, Partner Insar Consult at Office for Urban and Planning & Research and Associate at the University of Technology, Berlin and a member of IGSI gave a presentation on “Research in Germany – Land of Ideas: Building the City of tomorrow”, where he discussed about mobility, jobs and dealing with water bodies.
Sachin Jain, Founder and Director of SKYi Innovations LLP from Pune also shared his thoughts on using bio compostable Polymers in place of plastic.