Residents prepared for depositing segregated waste

As the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) prepares to start collecting segregated waste from Thursday, residents’ associations across the city were optimistic about meeting the challenges and improving the waste management process

As the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) prepares to start collecting segregated waste from Thursday, residents’ associations across the city were optimistic about meeting the challenges and improving the waste management process.

The MCG on Tuesday reiterated that from November 11, it will collect only segregated waste from households and that mixed waste will not be picked up. (HT Archive)

Residents of many condominiums said that they have been following the process for over a year now and are prepared to give segregated waste.

The MCG on Tuesday reiterated that from November 11, it will collect only segregated waste from households and that mixed waste will not be picked up. The civic body also plans to start penalising residents found dumping accumulated mixed waste in public spaces.

Residents’ welfare associations (RWA) on Wednesday said that separate boxes are kept at waste collection points and biodegradable, non-biodegradable and hazardous medical waste can be easily collected by the MCG’s concessionaire.

Reema Chibb, the general secretary of Oakwood Estate in DLF Phase-2 who manages the waste management system, said, “Till a year ago, household segregation of waste was a problem for everyone as people were not used to it. Over the past few months, we conducted several sensitisation programmes for domestic helps, guards and residents; to make everyone understand that they need to see waste also as something that can be useful.”

“We formed WhatsApp groups of residents and waste management experts, who would take questions from residents on what waste goes where — like where is one supposed to dispose off cotton or if pen go as dry waste or hazardous waste? We would do such hourly curiosity sessions. Gradually, people got into the habit of segregating waste and it has now become a practice,” she said.

Residents of DLF Phase-1 also shared a similar view and said that the process of waste collection has improved in the past few years with better awareness.

Malti Sahney, the general secretary of Silver Oaks Apartment in DLF Phase-1, said, “Over the past two years, all residents have been practising complete segregation of waste and the waste collection vehicles also take it from the collection points as it is disposed. We even compost our wet waste. But this was achieved after there was sensitisation at every level as the main challenge was to change the mindset of people. Domestic helps were taught what is wet waste or dry waste, how to dispose them. There were constant checks and support to the community to ensure that people follow it as rule.”

Meanwhile, some residents said that the segregation process was stopped in between due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but it has now been resumed.

“Segregation of waste was followed properly before; it was stopped for some time during the second wave of Covid-19. Since the past month, all residents have again started giving segregated waste, but the waste collection vehicles mix the waste when they take it. Today (Thursday), the vendors asked us to dig two pits in the society for composting wet waste,” said Rajan Taneja, secretary of Heritage Society RWA.

In the last week of October, the MCG issued directions to its sanitation wing and officials of Ecogreen Energy to make citizens aware of the segregation process. The segregation of waste is also aimed at converting wet waste into compost and recycling dry waste to the maximum possible extent so that the load carried to the overburdened Bandhwari landfill can be reduced.

The Bandhwari landfill receives around 2,000 tonnes of waste every day from Gurugram and Faridabad. With municipal solid waste from both the cities being dumped since 2015, around 2.5 million tonnes of legacy waste is currently accumulated at the Bandhwari landfill.

Sanjeev Sharma, the spokesperson for Ecogreen Energy, said, “If segregation of waste is followed properly in the city, then around 90% of the waste that currently goes to Bandhwari will be reduced and processed at the transfer station itself.”

Shubhra Puri, the founder of Gurgaon First, a citizen initiative to promote sustainability in Gurugram, said, “If waste segregation is followed properly, 60% of the waste production gets reduced at source itself, as kitchen waste can be used for composting. Along with this, the load to the landfill also reduces, with better working conditions for those who manage our waste. When waste segregation is followed properly, the entire city benefits from it and not just a handful residents.”