Ambikapur is a small city in Sarjuga district, Chhattisgarh with a population of 1.12 lakhs spread across 48 wards. The city generates about 51 metric tonne waste per day which was dumped at 16 acres dumping yard located 3.5 km away from the city. To tackle the daunting situation and manage the waste in an effective manner, the District Collector started a Solid and Liquid Resource Management (SLRM) project in collaboration with an NGO. The project was based on community engagement model that employs women from Self Health Groups (SHGs) and provides them livelihood opportunities. The primary objective was setting up a system of door-to-door collection of waste from home, commercial establishments and practice scientific disposal of waste in Ambikapur. With continuous efforts, the city administration managed to convert a 16 acre-open dumpsite into a sanitation awareness park and made Ambikapur a ‘Bin Free City’.
The Swachh Ambikapur Mission includes the following components:
Identification of women for SHGs
Orientation and training of women: It was necessary to train the women so as to inculcate two ideas in them-
Managing city’s solid waste is a job that is honourable and dignifying
The job is not about handling filthy garbage at the dumpsite, but recovering cash-worthy ‘resources’ in an industrial work shed.
3. Formation of community structure: Women from common locality were grouped together and assigned a SLRM centre close to their residence.
4. Infrastructure at the SLRM centre: With the land of around 3,000-4,000 sq. ft., the SLRM centre is an industrial work-shed.
5. IEC campaigning
6. Cost sharing: The Corporation pays for the monthly expenditure of around Rs. 20 to 25 lakh per month per centre.
References:
1. Display Picture: By Ayazmaqbool at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47393553
2. The Critical Role of Community Based Organizations in Urban Sanitation and Waste Management - A Compendium of Case Studies, Urban Management Centre, 2019
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