Sunday, April 26, 2015

Council president wants Batu 10 Cheras operations to be relocated


The Star, Saturday April 25, 2015
by stuart michael 
KAJANG Municipal Council (MPKj) president Mohd Sayuthi Bakar wants the Batu 10 quarry in Bandar Mahkota Cheras to stop operations and move to a new site.

Mohd Sayuthi said that the quarry area is located too close to housing estates, apartments and condominiums and it poses a danger to the residents and its surroundings.

“The blasting work the quarry operators do every Tuesday and Thursday sends shockwaves throughout the neighbourhood which residents claim are causing cracks on the walls of their apartments and condominiums.

“The Hulu Langat Land Office will submit a letter to the Selangor Economic Action Council (MTES) recommending that the permit to mine at Batu 10 Cheras be terminated,” he said during the MPKj full board meeting held at Kajang yesterday.

“We understand that the quarry permit is valid until next year but we will suggest that the period is shortened.

“I understand that the quarry operators have been operating for more than 35 years but it needs to be relocated as Kajang, Cheras and Semenyih are going through rapid development.

“The quarry operators will have to negotiate with the state on the location of the quarry replacement and it might not be located in the Kajang municipality,’’ said Mohd Sayuti.

He was referring to The StarMetro’s article published on April 21, “Too close for comfort”, on residents in Bandar Mahkota Cheras complaining about the shockwaves, cracks on their properties, dust pollution and what they had to endure staying close to the quarry.

When contacted, Hulu Langat Land Office district officer Zulkefli Khalid said that he would send the letter on the quarry to MTES next week.

Meanwhile, residents in Bandar Mahkota Cheras will be holding a protest with banners at 2.30pm in Pangsapuri Mahkota Residence tomorrow. 

The Joint Management Board (JMB) of Pangsapuri Mahkota Residence president Tan Su Tung said the committee had written to the National Audit Department three days ago to check on this matter.

During the meeting, Mohd Sayuthi also said he was looking at the feasibility of Bandar Sungai Long in Cheras having a bicycle lane to ease the congestion in the area as a higher learning institution would be set up there soon. 

Thousands of students are expected to study in the municipality within the next two years.

He said the councillors suggested having a flyover to ease the congestion but it was too expensive and it would cost millions of ringgit.

“Having a bicycle lane would be useful for residents there to lead a healthy lifestyle while being able to move around the township with ease,’’ he said.

Mohd Sayuthi supported the idea of having two carboot sales in Bandar Baru Bangi and Taman Pelangi in Semenyih, provided these vehicles do not block the parking area with tents during the event.

MPKj has allocated about 50 parking spots for the activity. 

Also, MPKj would set up two squads comprising 18 members per team in October to handle minor road repairs throughout the constituency.

Previously, MPKj only had one team. 

He added that the state government urged townships in the municipality to have a residents association or committee so that they could represent the people and bring their grouses to MPKj.

No comments:

Post a Comment