1,200 tonnes of additional garbage cleared after every event during Chithirai festival
Di erent government departments work in tandem and make strenuous e orts to keep the city clean and hygienic despite the sheer size of the crowd that descended on Madurai roads and left a massive amount of waste and leftovers during the major events of Ch
Strenuous eorts are being made to make the grand Chithirai festival successful by dierent government agencies. But, often what goes unnoticed is how the civic authorities keep clean and hygienic for days together the Masi streets and procession route of Lord Kallazhagar.
“We took up preparatory works in keeping the roads and streets spic and span before all the events and also again quickly clean them up after every event got over,” said Corporation Commissioner C. Dinesh Kumar.
The sheer size of the massive crowd on all days of the Chithirai festival and the traditional habits of serving food, eatables and beverages by volunteers and philanthropists led to littering of the roads and streets. “We have cleared an additional 1,200 tonnes of waste after every event held between April 12 and 23. Not just proper planning and eective supervision, but also hard work by conservancy workers who toiled day and night made it possible,” Mr. Dinesh Kumar said.
800 more hands
The corporation had deployed 2,874 workers, including 800 additional hands on these days. “Our men worked for three shifts with each team given specic stretches of roads and streets to work continuously without any lagging,” said City Health Ofcer S. Vinod Kumar.
Over 100 ocials led by two City Health Ocers, including supervisors, sanitary inspectors and health ocers, supervised the laborious work.
“This was very important because the wastes had to be cleaned within an hour from the procession route to prevent outbreak of any disease,” the Commissioner said. The ies that feast on leftover food could cause serious health issues added.
Over 125 vehicles, including tractors, tipper lorries, earthmovers, big and small, kept roaming around the city.
Ocials had issued notice to 203 organisations that had made arrangments for annadhanams to not allow littering on the roads.
“We had provided a trailer at a designated spot for dumping the waste to make the work easier,” the Commissioner said.
Bleaching powder and limestone powder were sprayed as precautionary measure. “We even used lemon grass oil, a disinfectant which would also emit a pleasant smell,” Mr. Dinesh Kumar said.
Drinking water, toilet facilities and medical camps were held.
Ambulances with advanced life support (ALS) facilities were stationed during the Tirukalynam and Lord Kallazhagar’s entry into the Vaigai river. The ALS helped in saving the life of a person who was injured in an attack.
The wastes had to be cleaned within an hour from the procession route to prevent outbreak of any disease
City Health Ocer