The ancient city of Hoi An in Quang Nam Province is the first locality of the country to collect garbage collection fees based on weight on a pilot basis, and the city’s Cam Nam Ward has been selected for this pilot project.
With the support of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Hoi An City government selected 450 households along Nguyen Tri Phuong Street in Cam Nam Ward to sort solid waste from daily activities into three groups. Accordingly, food waste is contained in transparent bags printed with dark blue words; recyclable waste is collected for recycling purposes; and the other solid waste is put in transparent bags printed with black words.
Every day, sanitation workers come over to sell bags of various sizes to local residents and to collect the sorted waste. Garbage collection fees are calculated based on the weight of waste discarded. This weight-based garbage rates will be applied throughout the country prior to 2025 in accordance with the Law on Environmental Protection.
Nguyen The Hung, vice chairman of the Hoi An City People’s Committee, told thanhnien.vn that the city would draw experience from this pilot project so as to expand it to other localities of the city in the future.
Special free drinking water bottles in town
Free drinking water bottles for passers-by in need are seen almost everywhere in HCMC. They are a lifebuoy for those who have to make a living outdoors on scorching summer days.
But the two drinking water bottles, one serving pure water and the other iced tea, on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street in front of Mac Ty Nho (St. Martin of Tours) Church in District 1 are different from others as they are placed under a thatch-roofed hut with wax gourd vines crawling on it, forming a scene that is soothing to the eyes. The hut is also decorated with some red lanterns, catching the eyes of passers-by.
According to dantri.com.vn, the bottles, glasses, pure water and tea have been funded by the church. Meanwhile, the task of filling up these bottles and washing glasses is done by some Catholics living in the neighborhood. Available from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, these drinking water bottles have served thousands of lottery tickets sellers, scrap buyers, motorbike taxi drivers and shippers over the past year. Two months ago, the parish priest had wax gourd vines grown to embellish the thatch-roofed hut.
Four brothers in their nineties
The eldest brother, Nguyen Ngoc Quynh, 100 years old, has three brothers: Nguyen Ngoc Giao, 98; Nguyen Ngoc Hoan, 95; and Nguyen Ngoc Can, 91. Used to be soldiers during the war against the French invaders, and then cadres, the first three brothers now live in Hoang Trach Village, Me So Commune, Van Giang District, Hung Yen Province. Also an ex-soldier, the youngest brother lives in Trau Quy Town, Gia Lam District, Hanoi.
According to vnexpress.net, the centenarian and his three brothers have over 300 children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Despite his old age, Quynh is still lucid and good at Chinese language. He takes time to visit his three brothers whenever he can.
Two years younger than his elder brother, Giao reads books every day to sharpen his mind. He also walks at least 1,000 steps around his house twice a day to stay fit. Meanwhile, at the age of 95, Hoan said he always tried to be as optimistic about everything, adding that an awake mind means physical strength. Can, the youngest brother, can still do the gardening and take part in many social activities.
Bus driver rescues passenger
At noontime on March 19, a young man boarded a bus in Hanoi. A short while later, he convulsed and collapsed onto the floor of the bus. Seeing that the victim might lose his life, Tran Ngoc Chi, 44, the bus driver, asked other passengers to move to the back of the bus, leaving space for Le Van Thang, Chi’s assistant, to lay the patient on the bus floor, while he drove the bus to the nearest health station.
After transferring the young man to the health station, Chi asked the bus operators’ permission to stay with the victim, and helped other passengers catch another bus to continue their trip. From the patient’s personal papers, the driver contacted his father, who rushed to the health station to take care of his son.
A few hours later, when the young man was conscious and his health was better, the father extended his gratitude to the kind bus driver, the bus assistant, and the health workers for what they had done to his son. Then he asked to take his son home, vnexpress.net reported.
