By OUR STAFF REPORTER
DEHRADUN, 18 Nov: Rishikesh Municipal Corporation has set an example for other urban local bodies (ULBs) by effectively managing plastic waste. The Municipal Corporation is not only successfully collecting plastic waste but is also reusing it in many ways through recycling.
Being a major centre for rafting and camping in addition to being a pilgrimage city, Rishikesh remains crowded with pilgrims and tourists throughout the year. Due to this, managing plastic waste here is a challenging task. On the initiative of Municipal Commissioner Shailendra Singh Negi, Rishikesh Municipal Corporation first established plastic banks at ISBT, Triveni Ghat, and Virbhadra. After collecting the old plastic bottles, these have been used by the Municipal Corporation to make boxes for these plastic banks, where people themselves put empty bottles or other plastic waste. About 400 kg of plastic has been recycled from these plastic banks so far. Seeing the success of this experiment, the Municipal Corporation is now going to set up plastic banks at Natraj Chowk, Transit Camp, and the Railway Station as well.
Rishikesh Municipal Corporation has also prepared a ‘Waste to Wonder’ park from plastic waste on the premises, in which children’s swings and decorative items have been made from old tyres, damaged street lights, bicycles, and scooters. Along with this, the Corporation is also preparing benches, tree cards, and plastic bank boxes from recycled plastic. Despite door-to-door garbage collection in Rishikesh Municipal Corporation, earlier the user charge could be collected only for three lakhs rupees per month, but now the Municipal Corporation has given the work of collecting user charges to women self-help groups (Triveni Sena). As a result, the Municipal Corporation’s collection has crossed Rs 13 lakh. Out of this, the Municipal Corporation gives a 25 per cent dividend to women groups, providing direct employment to about 250 women.
