Online portal launched to monitor use of fly ash

PNS n Vijayawada

Minister for Environment, Forest, Energy and Mines Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy has said that Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has been giving top priority to environment protection. A review meeting was held with Special Chief Secretary (Environment) Nirab Kumar Prasad, Corporation MD Khajuria and Chairman Gubba Chandrasekhar at the Andhra Pradesh Environment Management Corporation (APEMCL) office in Vijayawada on Wednesday.

On the occasion, he launched a newly established portal related to the management of waste.

The minister said that the government had decided to bring fly ash generated by thermal power stations under the purview of the AP Environment Management Corporation. A special online portal has been launched for complete monitoring of fly ash generated by 10 thermal power plants across the State.

This portal will have complete information about fly ash production, buyers and transporters. The minister said that information regarding how much fly ash was being produced, who was buying it, where it was transported to and what it was used for, would be recorded on this portal from time to time. Thus, cement companies, tiles, ready-mix companies, construction of national highways, industries that make bricks from fly ash and companies that transport the fly ash would all come on the same platform. He added that industries and thermal plants would benefit through this online portal and in turn it will help monitor the use of fly ash completely in accordance with the environmental norms.

The minister said that CM Jagan started APEMCL in 2019 with the intention of promoting industries in the State and taking special measures to control pollution and manage waste. The focus has been on making the waste released by various industries harmless, bringing them back into use and monitoring the aspects of how the waste was being disposed of. Neglecting industrial and bio-waste would have a major impact on people’s health and also on the environment.

Minister Peddireddy said that till now, 983 waste-generating companies had been registered under the corporation — 171 companies recycle and reprocess the waste, 170 companies transport these wastes and 1,279 vehicles carry them. Steps have been taken to reuse 8.32 lakh metric tonnes of solid waste by the corporation. He said that CM Jagan’s initiative in environment protection would be exemplary for other States as well.