Indian Express 13.04.2010
Door-to-door waste collection attracts local leaders
Ajay Khape Tags : door to door waste collection Posted: Tuesday , Apr 13, 2010 at 0401 hrs
Pune: Door-to-door waste collection that now covers only 2.5 lakh houses out of the 7.5 lakh in Pune city is drawing local politicians.With 5 lakh houses yet to be covered under the drive, some elected representatives are looking at floating their own groups for waste collection. Among them are former mayors Kamal Vyavahare and Rajlaxmi Bhosale, who want to start in their own wards to begin with.
With the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) struggling to manage the solid waste generated in the city, in 2008, Swach, a cooperative of waste collectors for door-to-door collection, which charges a minimum of Rs 10 per household per month was roped in.
The initiative yielded results and the exercise of reaching out to the remaining 5 lakh households has generated interest among elected representatives.
Bhosale said, “I have been demanding for long to allow more agencies to collect waste door-to-door but the civic administration has failed to do so. Many elected representatives are eager to contribute by setting up groups of unemployed poor residents of their wards for the job.”
Allowing only one agency to carry out the job is not in the interest of the city, she said, adding it will make the civic body depend completely on the agency.
Vyavhare said, “The civic initiative has given good results and needs to be strengthened. There have been complaints against Swach. So other groups need to be roped in. I have formed such a group for my electoral ward and has sought the permission of the civic body.” Apart from Swach charging more than it has been authorised to, she said it has been observed that door-to-door waste collectors hardly earn enough.
Shabana Diler of Swach denied this saying the network is spread in around 100 wards and only trained personnel execute door-to-door waste collection. “We have not received any complaint either from citizens or the civic administration regarding services of Swach members. There is an MoU with the PMC wherein a minimum of Rs 10 per house per month is charged though there is no maximum limit. The Swach is ready to initiate action against its members if they are forcing citizens to give more money,” she said. Suresh Jagtap, deputy municipal commissioner (solid waste management), PMC, said the civic body is committed to effective handling of waste generated in its jurisdiction.
