School students will soon be the focal point of plastic waste management plans of as many as five grama panchayats in and around North Paravur.
Aimed at become a zero-waste generating locality, the Paravur block panchayat has devised a new strategy that envisages collection of plastic waste from homes through school students. The scheme, which began on a trial basis earlier this month, envisages roping in students of 50-odd schools, in addition to 75 residents’ association in the first phase.
“Under the plan, the students will be encouraged to bring plastic waste from their homes and dispose them of in a waste bin to be set up in each of the class rooms. The school level committees will monitor the work done by each student’’, said Rema Sivasankaran, president, Paravur block panchayat.
The collected waste will be dumped at the collection points to be set up at various locations in the panchayat limits, which will be handed over for recycling. “We have already entered into an agreement with an NGO, which will be collecting the waste at Rs.2.50 per kg’’, she said.
The five grama panchayats to be covered under the programme are Kottuvally, Chendamangalam, Ezhikkara, Vadakkekkara and Chittattukara. The cost of implementing the project will be Rs.10 lakh.
As part of the programme, the students will be given training and orientation classes with the help of Suchitwa Mission. “We will brief students beforehand about the campaign and then let them go about spreading the message of zero wet waste generator door-to-door’’, officials said.
The civic body has already begun convening meetings of the residents’ association as well as school authorities and representatives of the Parents and Teachers’ Associations. The entire programme will be coordinated by an official at the block level and the best performers will be given awards.
According to officials, the civic body decided to involve students as it is one of the effective ways of project execution.
“There is a chance that the residents and schools might fall back to their old ways and hence we are keeping the project alive by roping in youngsters’’, they said.
