In this Bengal district, solid, plastic waste management now a people’s movement

“The idea behind the move is to make SWM units self-sufficient. The collected waste is segregated into degradable and non-degradable (non-biodegradable) portions. The degradable portion is used to make organic fertilisers. The vermicompost is sold for Rs 10 to 12 per kg. Women from various self-help groups (SHGs) are employed as community facilitators to create awareness regarding waste management,” said Rashmidipta Biswas, the Dinhata-II Block Development Officer (BDO).

Local resident Sangita Roy has been working as a community facilitator in the gram panchayat since the last few years. Every day at dawn, she keeps a vigil and blows a whistle if she spots anyone going to defecate in the open. “Despite having a toilet in their home, some people continue to defecate in the fields. We have to keep a watch on them. Bringing about a behavioural change in the people is our prime task. Slowly the people realised the benefits of having a toilet inside their home. We too started seeing a positive outcome of our work,” said Roy.

In 2017, Cooch Behar achieved the distinction of becoming the first open defecation-free (ODF) district in north Bengal. In 2020, the central government bestowed the Swachh Bharat Mission National Award (Grameen) 2020 upon Cooch Behar district.

In an attempt to sustain the momentum and ensure ODF behaviour among its people, the district administration started the Mission Nirmal Cooch Behar initiative the same year. The goal was to build on the ODF status, and develop solid and liquid waste management infrastructure for safe disposal of solid and liquid waste in villages.

Cooch Behar District Magistrate Pawan Kadyan said, “Mission Nirmal Cooch Behar has now moved on to the second phase. The focus is on improving solid waste management, starting the practice of plastic waste management (PWM) in rural areas and doing liquid waste greywater management. We have built more than 1,000 community sanitary complexes (CSCs) across the district in a year. We have covered all marketplaces, public places, gram panchayats and rural areas. We have also focused on menstrual health management by providing biodegradable sanitary napkins, under the brand name Bandhabi, that are made by local SHGs and given to students in schools.”

Kadyan is among the 19 winners of The Indian Express Excellence in Governance Awards for 2020 and 2021. The biennial awards celebrate the finest work done by District Magistrates, women and men considered the foot soldiers of governance as they script change that touches the lives of countless people across the country. Kadyan won in the Swachhata category.

According to him, 16 SWM units have been set up and 18 others are under execution.

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“We are the first district to set up a PWM unit in the state. Another PWM unit is under construction and three others are in the pipeline. Producing vermicompost is another component of solid waste management,” said Kadyan.

When it comes to liquid waste management, a large number of soak pits and covered drains have been constructed in rural areas and public places throughout the district after a thorough assessment. Concrete platforms have been constructed for all tube wells accompanied by soak pits. Planned measures have also been taken for greywater management with the help of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) and the 15th Finance Commission grants.