The cow tried coming at him again. Peter lost his balance and lay sprawled on the footpath. He was bleeding from the wound, and as he tried getting up from the garbage that lay strewn around, he slipped. Two stray dogs fighting close by almost fell over Peter.
Minnie was on her way to school when she saw Peter, hurt and lying on the pavement. She called out for help and passersby rushed to give him a hand. They chased away the cow and stray dogs. Someone gave him water to drink, while another washed his wounds.
“Why did you go near the cow?” asked someone.
Accidental rescue
Peter was in tears. “The cow was eating a plastic bag which had vegetable peels and other leftovers in it. I was trying to take the plastic bag away.”
“The cow must have thought you were taking away its food,” said someone from the crowd.
Minnie’s school was close by and she suggested that Peter go with her to get his wound cleaned. Luckily, the headmistress was there and she called the school nurse. She asked Peter how he had met with the accident. Soon, a crowd of Minnie’s friends gathered around.
Minnie said, “I wonder why people throw leftovers, papers, pins, glass bottles and all their rubbish in the same bin. If only they took a little trouble to segregate their garbage and give bottles and plastic for recycling there would be less rubbish around.”
“I saw some ragpickers empty the plastic bags onto the street and walk off with the plastic alone so that they could sell it, said Sheetal.
“People do not care enough to segregate garbage. Instead, they stuff everything into one bag and throw it somewhere near the dump. Crows and other birds tear open the bags to feed on the leftovers. Can people not put out their leftovers on the terrace for birds to feed?” asked Mary.
In some places they have separate bins but people throw the perishable and non- perishable waste into the same bin, said Peter. His act of trying to save the cow from eating plastic had left him with a bruised back.
“People throw away broken tube lights, weeds, broken pots, water bottles sometimes with half full water, broken tiles, cement bags, toothbrush, children’s soiled diapers. The list is long…,” said Minnie, as she took a deep breath.
Listening to this talk, the headmistress decided that her students who were so well informed should hold a workshop.
“Perhaps we could ask parents and the public to attend a workshop on garbage segregation,” said the headmistress and cheers went round. Peter agreed to come and talk about his “butting cow” episode. The workshop should be likely this weekend.
What do you think about the garbage crisis?Do you have a solution to the problem? Write in to let us know.
