E-Paper
Kalyan residents take green steps for zero-garbage city
About 30 families of a housing society in Annapurna Nagar, Kalyan (West) have set an example for encouraging and adopting waste management techniques.
About 30 families of a housing society in Annapurna Nagar, Kalyan (West) have set an example for encouraging and adopting waste management techniques.
Residents of the Mangeshi Housing Society are segregating waste and composting the wet waste on the premises.
They hand over dry waste to Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) for processing. The society also collects the sanitary waste separately. The society has initiated to follow the basic three steps to waste management, segregation, reuse and disposal of waste and reduction of waste.
The society is planning to apply for the 5% exemption on property tax for one year.
KDMC had announced 5% exemption of property tax for those housing societies who are segregating waste effectively, and also processing and disposing it within the society limits without giving it to the civic body, in May this year.
“A newspaper report in September said not a single building was taking advantage of the exemption by KDMC. So, we decided to take up this initiative and set an example for others,” said Kailas Deshpande, 40, member of the society.
As per the KDMC guidelines, the society will get exemption on tax only if the waste segregation and disposal is practised for one year continuous ly.
“Some societies are segregating the waste and giving it to the civic body. The residents of Mangeshi Housing Society are one step ahead, as they are not dumping any wet waste. We make sure the residents get all the help they require to manage and process waste,” said Milind Gaikwad, an in-charge officer of KDMC, solid waste management department.
Besides, two drums for dry and wet waste, every floor in the society has sanitary napkin disposal bins.
“The compost is generated from the wet waste is used for the plants that surround our society complex,” said Deshpande.
The women members have played an active role in spreading awareness about zero-waste plan to the children and senior citizens. “We started with putting up a charts that explained the waste segregation process on the society’s notice board. Some were initially against this, but after we answered their queries, they all agreed,” Sukhada Deshpande, 36, who makes compost out of the wet waste for her garden.
Another resident Mangesh Latke, 63, said, “Senior citizens are willing to take over the responsibility and are encouraging residents to follow it.”
Around 649 metric tonnes of non- segregated waste is dumped at Adharwadi dumping ground, which is overburdened with waste. The failure of the KDMC to dispose of solid waste had attracted the attention of the Bombay high court, which had passed an order on 13 April 2015, banning sanctions on housing projects under the civic body’s jurisdiction.
A total of 83 families of Royal Residency in Adharwadi, Kalyan (West), have been segregating waste for the past one year.
The society has appointed staff to collect segregated waste from the residents. “I collect segregated waste only. The dry waste is sent to the KDMC in the morning,” said Nivruthi Golge, 26, the housekeeping staff of the building.
The society plans to process wet waste on the society premises. “We will have our compost unit in the society soon,” said Bhaskar Mhaske, 63, a resident of Royal Residency.
Onyx building in Godrej hill, Kalyan (West), too, has adopted the green initiative.
The society comprises 60 families. “It took at least three months to convince all residents in the building to segregate waste. We have also kept separate bins for the disposal of sanitary napkins,” said Deepa Shinde, 37, a resident of the building.
Stay updated with all the Breaking News and Latest News from Mumbai. Click here for comprehensive coverage of top Cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, and more across India along with Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News.
