Swach, PMC & Kashtakari Panchayat Trust to begin pilot programme of ‘Commit to zero’

Under this initiative, citizens will get the opportunity to learn the best practices of waste management

After 350 housing societies approached SWaCH Pune to help them maximise waste at the source, SWaCH Pune along with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Kashtakari Panchayat Trust have implemented a joint initiative named ‘Commit to zero’ that will begin with its pilot awareness programme by this weekend.

Presently, ‘Commit to zero’ is in its initial phase and societies are still in talks to be on board the initiative. A few societies have even started zero waste practices. (Representative photo)

“Under this initiative, citizens will get the opportunity to learn the best practices of waste management. This will improve at source segregation rates, strengthen Pune’s reuse and recycling culture and most importantly, encourage at source wet waste processing through composting and biogas. We have been speaking about and spreading awareness especially with bulk waste generators, where there are more than 100 households,” said Priya Kathuria, lead, Commit to zero.

“The idea is to build sustainable, inclusive and responsible zero waste communities across Pune to maximise at source waste management,” she said.

Presently, ‘Commit to zero’ is in its initial phase and societies are still in talks to be on board the initiative. A few societies have even started zero waste practices.

Kathuria added, “Although smaller societies face some challenges with waste, the amount of waste generated by them is not as high as compared to bulk waste generators. And they channelise their waste through SWaCH and PMC in most places. For bulk waste generators, it’s by law that they have to process their wet waste at source. So, through ‘Commit to zero’, we aim to help them do it sustainably.”

The waste-pickers and citizens of Pune together have been managing the city’s waste sustainably for more than a decade. In Pune, they compost over four tonne of wet waste, divert 220 tonne of dry waste for recycling, and safely dispose five tonne of sanitary waste daily. But with the growing population and urbanisation, there is a need to come together and commit to small yet regular and effective habits of at source waste management to build an ecosystem of zero waste at the doorstep.