My Ganga, My Responsibility

From 10-year-olds to college students to families, people of all age-groups are coming forward to spread awareness on the growing issue of plastic waste entering public dumping spots and the Ganga river.

Situated on the banks of Ganga, India’s holiest river, are the vibrant, spiritual cities of Rishikesh and Haridwar. They play host to millions of tourists and devotees who visit every year, which unfortunately, coupled with a rising demographic, the twin-cities are witnessing an increase in plastic waste. One challenge for managing it has been the lack of segregating waste types at source, which helps the waste collectors and operators separate out plastics and recycle as must of it as possible. As of last year,  awareness on the practice of source segregation was low, where 70% of households in Haridwar and 90% in Rishikesh were using a single bin for waste disposal.

Project Aviral is an initiative that has made it its mission to tackle the growing problem of plastic waste in this region.  It has been working with municipal authorities to both improve the waste management systems and spread awareness among residents and tourists on key practices such as  source segregation and anti-littering. The timing of the initiative has been particularly opportune, as it added a voice to the call by the Government of India for greater solid and liquid waste management through the implementation of the Swachh Bharat, or ‘Clean India’, Mission in urban and rural communities. A complementary initiative seeking to improve access to drinking water for rural households, Jal Jeevan Mission, is also calling for greater engagement around sustaining critical water sources, which includes minimizing the amount of waste that is released into water sources.

Since the initiative rolled out, there has been a vast improvement in waste management practices among the households as residents are not only segregating their waste as per the categories, but also volunteering to encourage their neighbors to follow the practice and monitor their waste daily, during collection. One of the volunteers, Meera, a mother of three, has been actively mobilizing communities in her city to adopt source segregation and visits up to 200 households every day. With great pride she expresses, 

“It’s not just my passion for Ganga. I believe it is my responsibility to keep it clean. I consider all the residents I meet as my family working together to keep Haridwar clean and green.” 

Children too have played an active role in promoting positive behaviors related to waste management in their communities. From organizing rallies to participating in clean up drives, and some even sharing letters to residents to encourage them to become aware about their waste practices, these young champions have been taking on the responsibility for a sustainable future in their own hands. Most recently, students from DAV School in Haridwar led a rally and clean-up drive where they advocated with residents on problems caused by mixed waste and open dumping. They also connected the need to improve waste management with larger benefits, such as  how changing small practices can have a positive impact on the health of their community, waste workers who collect and sort the waste, and the street animals like cows who often mistake the plastic items for food.

A student from DAV shared,

“We get very concerned. This waste enters our beloved Ganga through drains and many times we see cows eating plastic packets that are soiled with food. We were aware of these issues before but were not sure how we can reach out to our communities and spread awareness. The Aviral team conducted sessions on waste management in our schools and helped us understand how we can advocate for people to become responsible about their waste. We are confident now that our efforts will help people understand that we all need to come together to solve the waste crisis affecting our city”.

Under the project, clubs have been established for each ward in which sessions on relevant topics are conducted for children. After the training children with the help of field supervisors, participate in community activities that include rallies, clean-up drives, slogan-making, and wall-paintings.

Informal waste workers or fondly known as “Safai Mitr” have also emerging as crucial waste champions in the fight to reduce plastic waste entering the environment. The backbone of any clean city, waste workers work tirelessly, travelling from home to home, collecting and sorting out people’s waste. Often the waste collected is mixed which poses a safety threat to these workers as they have to sort through broken glass, soiled sanitary wear, and COVID-19 disposables. Therefore, one of the key focus of the initiative  is to promote and secure the occupational health and safety of waste workers in Haridwar and Rishikesh. Through knowledge training workshops, medical camps, collection infrastructure improvement, and the distribution of personal protective equipment, waste workers now receive more security.