Kilvelur cleanest among town panchayats

Kilvelur town panchayat in Nagapattinam district has retained the top rank in the list of cleanest local bodies with a population of less than 20,000 in Tamil Nadu. In the 2022 survey, it was ranked 145 out of 307 among local bodies with population less than 15,000. However, the panchayat made a huge leap the next year, to the first position. In the 2024 survey, the category was modified into ‘population less than 20,000 people,' but Kilvelur topped again. With a population of around 10,000, it has around 2,700 households in 15 wards and 460 shops. Waste collection is 3.6 tonne, including 1.8 tonne of biodegradable waste and 1.6 tonne of nonbiodegradable waste.K Kuhan, who was executive officer during the 2024 survey, said, they encouraged residents and traders to improve source segregation. "We also motivated people to reduce, reuse and recycle the waste," he said. Kilvelur scored ODF+ in the number of individual household toilets. It also received a star in ‘Garbage Free' aspect for maintenance of public places. "Sanitary workers maintain their punctuality in waste collection and work hard to maintain cleanliness," says M Pakkirisamy of Sri Balaji Nagar Residents Welfare Association.Traders said they sensitised the public, consumers, and students. R Dharani, proprietor of ARS Supermarket, said, "We began supporting the local body by avoiding plastics and using cloth bags. We also urged the customers to bring their bags to avoid plastic pollution." Sanitary workers said their family members are proud of them. Town panchayat chairperson S Indiragandhi, vice-chairperson S Chandrasekaran, and Kilvelur MLA 'Nagai' V Mali lauded the achievement.