Meat waste that was earlier buried at the Vellalore dumpyard is no longer being disposed of at the site.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement.
The Coimbatore Corporation has discontinued the practice of burying meat waste at the Vellalore dumpyard after months of protests by people living in nearby localities, and environmental organisations.Officials said Coimbatore generates about 25 tonnes of meat waste every day from its 100 wards, with the quantity increasing to nearly 60 tonnes during weekends. The waste is first collected by private contractors under the supervision of sanitary officials, consolidated in container trucks at zonal collection points and then transported. Waste from the South Zone is being taken to fish and prawn farms in Palakkad, Kerala, while the remaining four zones send their waste to similar facilities in Mysuru, Karnataka.The shift follows prolonged opposition to the practice of disposing of meat waste at the Vellalore dumpyard. Residents and the Kurichi-Vellalore Pollution Prevention Action Committee had alleged that the dumping caused persistent foul odour, affected sanitation and could contaminate groundwater.The Corporation had earlier entrusted meat waste processing to a private contractor operating a 15-tonne-per-day facility at Vellalore. It ordered the closure of the facility last year after concluding that it was inadequate to process the city’s daily meat waste, following which the waste was temporarily disposed of at the Vellalore dumpyard until an alternative system was put in place.K.S. Mohan, secretary of the Kurichi-Vellalore Pollution Prevention Action Committee, welcomed the move and said the decision followed the committee’s sustained representations to the Corporation over the past year. Published - July 05, 2026 07:17 pm IST
