As part of involving rag-pickers in tackling the Herculean task of solid waste management, a co-operative has been formed.
The co-operative formed under the Andhra Pradesh Mutually-Aided Co-operative Societies Act, 1995, has launched work in five wards on a pilot basis. With sanitation workers having to clean roads, clear drains and collect garbage door-to-door, residents' complain about garbage not being collected regularly.
The GVMC officials and representatives of ARTD (Urban) visited Pune in January to study the experience of Solid Waste Management and Handling (SWACH), a co-operative of rag-pickers. The organisation had entered into an MoU with Pune Municpal Corporation, received a grant for five years for creation of awareness on solid waste management.