Krishna cleaning to begin today in Vijayawada

Vijayawada: The cleaning of Krishna river and three other canals will begin at different places in Vijayawada and other mandals of Krishna district on Thursday. Under the programme, waste materials particularly the plastic carry materials will be removed from canals and river downstream of Prakasam barrage, for two days from Thursday and Friday. The Krishna district administration has planned to take up massive river and canals cleaning programme to check pollution in water bodies.

The irrigation, municipal and panchayat raj department officials have identified 81 points including 21 dangerous points where the waste materials are piled up in huge quantities in water bodies. JCBs and tractors will be used to remove to waste materials and transport them from the canals and Krishna river. District Collector Md Imtiaz on Wednesday released a poster related to river and canals cleaning programme at his camp office. Vijayawada Municipal Corporation, district panchayat raj, medical and health, irrigation and other departments, 102 NGOs and students will take part in the two days special cleanliness drive.

The district administration has planned to start the cleanliness drive at different places so that maximum waste materials can be removed.

The main objective of cleanliness programme is to check contamination of water and ensure clean drinking water to the people. Drinking water supplied from Bandar, Eluru and Ryves canals will reach 450 village panchayats in 20 mandals of Krishna district. Eluru canal water will reach Eluru, West Godavari district. Residents in the tail-end areas are getting the contaminated waters due to garbage, mud and waste plastic materials piled up in the canals. Irrigation department releases water from the canals for cultivation of crops in kharif and rabi season. These three canals are mostly dry for more than six months in a year. In the meantime, people are dumping waste materials, garbage and building materials into the canals. Thousands of tonnes of waste materials particularly plastic materials stagnated in these canals and Krishna river downstream of Prakasam barrage.

Collector Imtiaz said the river and canals cleaning programme is a continuous drive and awareness programmes would be conducted among residents along the canals to check the dumping of garbage and waste materials into the canals and river. He said traders, residents, hoteliers, vendors, fruit merchants and others habituated to dump the waste in to the canals and river. He said 81 polluted points were identified and focus would be laid on cleaning these areas.

He said Krishna river water is catering to needs of 40 lakh population in delta area. He emphasised the need to protect the river from pollution and called upon the people, students, NGOs and government employees to join the special drive to clean the river and three canals.