Waste Management

Written by Sowbhagya and translated from Kannada to English by Devaki Samuel It’s been twenty years since I started working as community organizer. I started as a teacher for children of 3-6 years of age. I noticed most of the time older sisters came to drop their younger siblings. The sisters were beautiful, smart and intelligent but had taken the burden of single mothers, who were involved in incense stick making. Deprived of education, instead of holding books, their hands were blackened with the ingredients of incense sticks. Whenever I saw them, my heart ached.  I had an opportunity to…

Written by Sowbhagya and translated from Kannada to English by Devaki Samuel It’s been twenty years since I started working as community organizer. I started as a teacher for children of 3-6 years of age. I noticed most of the time older sisters came to drop their younger siblings. The sisters were beautiful, smart and intelligent but had taken the burden of single mothers, who were involved in incense stick making. Deprived of education, instead of holding books, their hands were blackened with the ingredients of incense sticks. Whenever I saw them, my heart ached.  I had an opportunity to…

I’ve been thinking a lot about garbage. Every day I find myself pondering about Bengaluru’s garbage plight. If you don’t live here, here’s a quick summary: there is a lot of garbage on the streets, sometimes so much it looks like a miniature landfill is just hanging out, uninvited, on your street corner. There aren’t public garbage bins because in 2000 they were banned in favor of an entirely different approach to waste management. The Ugly Indian explained it well in an article: “[Chief Minister SM Krishna] banned the street dustbin, and set up a door-to-door garbage collection system –…

I’ve been thinking a lot about garbage. Every day I find myself pondering about Bengaluru’s garbage plight. If you don’t live here, here’s a quick summary: there is a lot of garbage on the streets, sometimes so much it looks like a miniature landfill is just hanging out, uninvited, on your street corner. There aren’t public garbage bins because in 2000 they were banned in favor of an entirely different approach to waste management. The Ugly Indian explained it well in an article: “[Chief Minister SM Krishna] banned the street dustbin, and set up a door-to-door garbage collection system –…

Bevinmara Colony - Before and After. Pic: Team FORCE-GW Bevinmara Colony is a small village in Whitefield surrounded by high-rise apartments and high-end villa communities. The village has about 300 households, 6 shops, 3 temples and 1 church. Residents of Bevinamara Colony needed help in improving the overall condition of the colony in the areas of education, health and infrastructure. Proper Solid Waste Management (SWM) in the village was one of the many initiatives that the Federation of RWAs, Communities and Establishments of Greater Whitefield (FORCE-GW ) wanted to implement in Bevinmara Colony. The residents of the colony were very…

Bevinmara Colony - Before and After. Pic: Team FORCE-GW Bevinmara Colony is a small village in Whitefield surrounded by high-rise apartments and high-end villa communities. The village has about 300 households, 6 shops, 3 temples and 1 church. Residents of Bevinamara Colony needed help in improving the overall condition of the colony in the areas of education, health and infrastructure. Proper Solid Waste Management (SWM) in the village was one of the many initiatives that the Federation of RWAs, Communities and Establishments of Greater Whitefield (FORCE-GW ) wanted to implement in Bevinmara Colony. The residents of the colony were very…

When trash seems to be strewn everywhere in our public spaces, it was heartening to see this sight at the Bannerghatta Zoo. Long may such initiatives last! Zoo, 18th January, 2015.

When trash seems to be strewn everywhere in our public spaces, it was heartening to see this sight at the Bannerghatta Zoo. Long may such initiatives last! Zoo, 18th January, 2015.

Author: Tanmayee Narendra What does it mean to be “educated”? Does education necessarily mean a more heightened awareness about one’s role in society? These are some questions that I was forced to ask myself after I met with John, the manager of the Dry Waste Collection Center (DWCC) near the Jayadeva Flyover. Let me tell you more about John. John comes from a family of scrap dealers. While thoughts of garbage generally trigger images of filth and refuse for most of us, the same object is a source of income for him. John at his Dry Waste Collection Centre. Pic:…

Author: Tanmayee Narendra What does it mean to be “educated”? Does education necessarily mean a more heightened awareness about one’s role in society? These are some questions that I was forced to ask myself after I met with John, the manager of the Dry Waste Collection Center (DWCC) near the Jayadeva Flyover. Let me tell you more about John. John comes from a family of scrap dealers. While thoughts of garbage generally trigger images of filth and refuse for most of us, the same object is a source of income for him. John at his Dry Waste Collection Centre. Pic:…