New agency to run waste plant

KOCHI: The Corporation decided to give the charge of operation and maintenance of the solid waste treatment plant at Brahmapuram to the Centre for Environment and Development (CED), amidst protests from the opposition bench. Following the protest, Mayor Mercy Williams put the issue to vote. The council decided to approve the agenda by 37 votes against 23.Initiating the discussion on the topic, Opposition leader A.B. Sabu said that the decision to award the contract to CED was made without following proper procedure. It is learnt that the agency was selected on the basis of a recommendation from a ministers office, he said. In her reply,. Williams said that CED is one among the nine agencies certified as Centre for Excellence on Urban Development by the Union Government and it has been selected as the implementing agency for solid waste management programmes taken up by local administration bodies in the State.