With plans to involve them in solid waste management yet to take off, waste-pickers are pressing to fully implement the Memorandum of Understanding reached with their co-operative and implement provisions relating to them in Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules 2016.
As per the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 the local bodies should set up material recovery facilities with suitable space to sort out recyclable materials to enable informal or authorised waste-pickers and waste-collectors to separate recyclables and provide easy access to them to collect recyclables like paper, plastic, metal, glass, textiles etc.
The SWM Rules 2016 also direct that a system to recognise informal waste-collectors and waste-pickers be established to integrate them in door-to-door collection, forming self-help groups and issuing identity cards to them.
In Bangalore 160 dry waste sheds have been set up and 40 per cent of solid waste is being collected by an NGO Hasirudala (Green Face), said Pragada Srinivasu, CEO of the co-operative society that entered into an MoU with the UCD wing of GVMC.
Skill development for waste-collectors and pickers should focus on segregation of hazardous, hospital and e-waste and turning organic waste into compost, he said.
Subhrata had organised training for waste-pickers at ASR Nagar near Tatichetlapalem and Girijan Colony at Gajuwaka in association with Hasirudala.
Gajuwaka MLA Palla Srinivasa Rao, who had inaugurated the training, assured them they would press for implementation of the assurances given by the Chief Minister, Mr. Vasu said.
The Chief Minister had held a meeting with officials of MA&UD and Mission for Elimination of Poverty in Municipal Areas (MEPMA) in April 2015 after which an action plan was drawn up and implemented entering into MoU.
The Urban Community Development wing of GVMC has entered into an MoU with Subhrata Rag-pickers' Mutually Aided Co-operative Society here as a part of the MEPMA plan to create a database of 17,800 waste collectors in 16 municipalities when Solomon Arokia Raj was the mission director.
No ID cards
It included survey of waste-pickers, identification, creating a data base and forming of 100 common interest groups.
Even after a year of the signing of the MoU identity cards have not been issued issued to waste-pickers, said Mr. Vasu.
Fifty common interest groups have been formed, bank accounts opened and the waste-pickers are saving money.
As per the MoU, funds have been released by MEPMA and details of 1000 rag-pickers uploaded to the page allotted on MEPMA website.
Though a meeting with the Mission Director in July in Vijayawada assured them that identity cards would be issued by August 15, it did not happen, he said.
