Citizens must participate in environmental protection: GHMC Commissioner

GHMC Commissioner R.V. Karnan, IAS , on Monday visited the mega e-waste collection drive organised by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) in the city. He inspected the drive set up at Baglingampally, under Circle-41 (Musheerabad) , and reviewed the arrangements made for the programme.

During the visit, the Commissioner closely examined the camps, dedicated counters, and vehicles deployed for e-waste collection . He interacted with field staff to understand the process of collecting e-waste and gave directions to officials on the proper segregation, safe storage, and scientific disposal of old computers, mobile phones, TVs, batteries, and other electronic waste collected from citizens.

He also enquired whether the vehicles assigned for e-waste collection were operating on schedule and whether arrangements were in place to ensure that citizens did not face any inconvenience . Commissioner Karnan appreciated the efforts of sanitation teams and field staff in successfully conducting the drive.

Addressing the gathering, he warned that indiscriminate disposal of e-waste could increase environmental pollution and pose serious health risks. He highlighted that harmful chemicals in old electronic devices could contaminate soil, water, and air. He urged every citizen to act responsibly and hand over e-waste only to officially designated collection centres .

Commissioner Karnan called upon the residents of the city to actively participate in the GHMC’s mega e-waste drive by safely disposing of their old and unusable electronic items. He emphasised that active citizen involvement was key to the success of the programme and would contribute to building a cleaner and healthier city .