Amidst numerous cleaning drives initiated by NGOs, government agencies, greens, and private firms on Gandhi Jayanti on Wednesday, the city also showcased a zero-budget waste management model successfully experimented by a progressive residential forum (‘Niravu Vengeri’) here for the past several years.
The waste-management model, which mainly focusses on the management of plastic waste by systematically collecting and making it available for recycling at different plants, was introduced two months ago at a college (Providence Women’s College) under the guidance of the residential forum.
On Wednesday, a prominent school in the city (Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Nadakkavu) with a strength of 2,500 students and an entire ward comprising 470 residents (Payimbra) at Kuruvattur panchayat in Kozhikode adopted the method. Both students as well as the residents started the collection of plastic waste from their homes on Gandhi Jayanti, which was later moved to a recycling centre at West Hill with the help of members of the residential forum.
At the Payimbra ward, they had already conducted an awareness campaign among the residents with the assistance of students from a government high school prior to the launch of the scheme. Members from as many as 16 Kudumbasree units at the panchayat were entrusted with the responsibility of collecting the plastic waste from the houses on a monthly basis. The plastic waste will be collected at select points and will be transported to the recycling plant on a given day.
According to the Payimbra ward member C. Jithesh, the fact that Niravu residential forum had been successfully employing this method for the last several years had given them the confidence to adopt the method.
“We are sure that this can bring about a major change in dealing with plastic waste in our daily life,” said Mr. Jithesh.
Inspired by the model set by Niravu Residential Forum, many collectives are coming forward to adopt the method. “Among several others, a farmers club from Koodathayi in Omassery panchayat had also approached us to give them guidance on how to go about practising this method,” said Babu Parambath, coordinator of the zero-budget waste management method for Niravu.
This method, according to him, was hassle-free and would cause no financial burden to anyone.
“A concept about waste and a resolve to deal with it is the core of this method,” he said. Mr. Babu can be contacted on Ph: 9447276177.
