The Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) has written to the State government seeking permission for offering subsidy to the Residents’ Welfare Associations (RWAs) that agree to install waste management system in their premises.

The MCG plans to offer subsidy ranging from Rs.1 lakh to Rs.5 lakh depending upon the number of residents. The move is aimed at encouraging decentralisation of waste management.

According to the MCG officials, the proposal has been mooted in view of the closure of the solid waste management plant at Bandhwari. The plant has been shut for more than two years now. Around 700 metric tonne of waste is being dumped at the Bandhwari plant every day. Of this, around 100 metric tonne is recyclable. But in the absence of proper disposal, it has become a cause of concern and the MCG has therefore decided to involve people and promote decentralisation of waste management.

“It will take at least a month for the proposal to get green signal from the government. The amount proposed may not be enough but the RWAs can initiate the basic process which will help them,” said MCG PRO Satyabir Rohilla.

Welcoming the move, citizen activist Ruchika Sethi, who runs Why Waste Your Waste campaign, said that to truly motivate them to convert the waste to a reusable resources, and for the scheme to be meaningful , the Municipal Corporation may please consider buying back 30-40 per cent of the organic compost or and establish a channel of distribution. “It’s also critical to formulate safe environmental practices of conversion of waste to resource. It cannot be at the cost of creating more carbon footprints or else it beats the very purpose. Not many communities are aware of environmentally safe way to decompose, treat and manage the entire process of converting the solid organic waste to organic compost. An environmental MSW committee can be constituted to approve and monitor the de-centralized schemes,” said Ms. Sethi.

Article source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/gurgaon-focuses-on-waste-management/article8090492.ece.