The Annapoorna chain of restaurants and Pazhamudhir Nilayam have agreed do away with plastic bags and use cloth bags instead. This would be part of the initiative taken up by the Special Officer Dr K. Vijayakarthikeyan in eradicating usage of plastic bags.

According to Suresh Bhandari, a solid waste management expert, many other shops have also agreed to use cloth bags. “Some of them are even offering special discounts to customers who carry their own bags,” he says.

The Special Officer  had launched various schemes to make the city  a better place to live in. Some of the other initiatives launched were Vellore landfill greening campaign, Green and Clean Diwali Award programme and Dial your debris helpline .

The authorities had recently disconnected more than 100 illegal water connections and removed 137 unauthorised hoardings and billboards. Door- to -door campaigning on waste segregation was carried out in various wards.

Explaining about the ‘Dial your Debris helpline’, R. Raveendran, Secretary of Resident Awareness Association of Coimbatore ( RAAC ) said the helpline would deal with disposal of the debris. “Not many people make use of the facilities the Corporation has provided for this purpose. The helpline will help in dealing with such issues and extend assistance in disposing of the debris. It would be recycled and made into bricks and sand,” he said.

Public can easily register their grievance at +91 8190000200. Dial for Debris helpline – +91 8190000400