Jetting machines to clean up City

KOCHI: Kochi Corporation will soon buy modernised jetting machines to declog water and sanitary pipelines. It will also buy advanced sucker machines and road cleaning machines. Using the new equipment the civic body will be able to carry out waste removal in an effective way. It will be purchased utilising the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) funds. The cost of purchasing these machines is estimated at Rs 1.5 crore. According to a top Corporation official, the orders have already been placed for the purchase of the machines. It is also learnt that the empowered committee meeting has already given the green signal for the purchase of modernised machines. Among the new set of machines, the advanced sucker machines will help to desilt the drains much faster and more effectively. “Almost all the other major metros have advanced machines. These machines will help to clean the drains in a time-bound manner,” said the official.He said that at present the silt removed from the canals and drains are piled up on the roadsides. “The silt will be removed from both sides of the drains only after a day. Sometimes, the slit piled up on the sides of the drains will flow onto the roads during the rain causing inconvenience to the public,” said the official.He also said that as the modernised sucker machines can suck the silt, the issues related to the non-removal of slit will not arise. Another advantage of the modernised machines is that the machines can be inserted into the covered drains without removing all the slabs. “We have to remove all the slabs for manual cleaning and cleaning using traditional machines. The new machines will solve the problem,” he said.The road cleaning machines will be used to clean the main roads and footpaths in the city. This will help the civic body to maintain the roads neat and clean. It will be more effective than manual sweeping.