The Thanjavur Municipal Corporation has been selected to implement an integrated solid waste management project under the City Investments to Innovate, Integrate and Sustain (CITIIS) 2.0 programme of the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs at an estimated cost of ₹135 crore.
According to civic body sources, the Union Ministry invited proposals from 100 cities/towns across the country where the Smart City project was implemented for taking up integrated solid waste management programme. Thanjavur is one of the 18 cities/towns out of 100 that were selected for implementing the CITIIS 2.0 programme, which aims to address climate change, including achieving net-zero emissions by 2070.
The CITIIS 2.0 programme has been jointly proposed by the Union Ministry in collaboration with the French Development Agency, KfW Development Bank, the European Union, and the National Institute of Urban Affairs, which aims to drive investments into urban climate action through competitively selected projects promoting a circular economy with a focus on integrated waste management, to foster climate-sensitive planning, and action through evidence-driven approaches, and to build an institutional mechanism.
The Thanjavur Corporation proposes to utilise ₹135 crore grant under the CITIIS 2.0 programme to take up biomining at Jabamalaipuram garbage dump yard, set up a crematorium for pets, acquire 200 electric vehicles for garbage transportation, robotic drainage excavator, equipment for safe disposal of plastics waste, and carbon footprint sensors to achieve the status of ‘green city’ by 2026, sources said.
