In a bid to maintain good sanitation and clean surroundings, the Mysore City Corporation (MCC) is taking steps to establish ‘zero waste management' units in all its 65 wards, and the responsibility for handling waste will be entrusted to Stree Shakti groups and residents' welfare associations.
A half-day training programme on solid waste management and disposal for pourakarmikas working on contract was held at the Town Hall here on Thursday. They were trained by experts and MCC authorities to collect and segregate garbage, and to dispose of it in a systematic manner.
Mysore district in-charge Minister S.A. Ramdas inaugurated the workshop. The pourakarmikas were apprised of the importance of safety and health while disposing of garbage. Workers, both men and women, were given gloves, masks and uniforms. Men also received gumboots.
The pourakarmikas were told to segregate the organic waste first, which would be transported to the disposal spot at a waste management farm for converting into manure.
Dry waste would be segregated into 22 different categories and sent to recycling units for reuse, while only non-recyclable wastes would go to landfill sites. This measure is expected to ease the load at the waste management farm where organic waste is being handled.
The MCC has taken steps to decentralise the garbage disposal system by setting up a pilot ‘zero waste management' unit at Kumbarakoppal in the city. This unit is being maintained by members of Stree Shakti groups and the resident's welfare association there, and is working well. Currently, organic waste is being dumped at the waste management farm for conversion into manure and dry waste is taken to landfills.
