Port Blair, July 27: Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase-II has been uniquely designed to leverage the capacity of individuals and communities in rural India to create a peoples movement to ensure that the ODF status of rural areas is sustained, people continue to practice safe, hygienic behaviour and that all villages have solid and liquid waste management arrangements.
Door-to-door waste collection methods have been incorporated mainly in several rural areas across Andaman & Nicobar Islands by the Gram Panchayats, with the primary purpose of achieving higher sorting rates of waste. The Directorate of RD, PRIs and ULBs, with the aim of Zero Waste Andamans, is working on a model where the waste does not find a fixed point. Being an Island territory, there is no escape route for us as far as waste is concerned. Surrounded by sea, whatever is thrown in and around, ultimately is discharged to open sea, which then is disposed off along shores with the tide of waves. Potentially having limited geographical area, the idea of heaps of dump yard is also obsolete.
Therefore, the only potential solution is to make the SWM Cluster a centre for the processing of waste and to ensure that things received are processed, managed, and supplied outward for further recycling. To achieve this, segregation of waste, therefore, becomes very significant.
To improve the segregation in rural areas and teach the habit amongst the households, the Directorate of RD, PRIs and ULBs under Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) provides two colour-coded Dustbins (Green & Blue) to all Gram Panchayats in a phased manner.
In one such case, colour coded dustbin has been distributed for effective door-to-door collection at Gram Panchayat Madhupur under Diglipur block in the North & Middle Andaman district. The GP received sets of dustbins for 1134 Households from the Directorate of RD. Around 850 Households have received the dustbins so far. The collection of wastes is carried daily, and user fees are collected from households & commercial establishments in the village under the SWM Bye-Laws.
These two separate dustbins have been given for the disposal of different types of wastes. Wastes are now segregated and dumped in separate dustbins. The Green coloured dustbins are meant for wet and bio-degradable waste. E.g.:- Kitchen wastes, including vegetables and fruit skins. Blue Dustbins are meant for the disposal of plastic wrappers and non-biodegradable waste. The Swachhagrahis and Sanitary workers and supervisors are trained for the proper collection of segregated waste.