Bengaluru, KARNATAKA :
Follow your class 5 moral science lesson on cleanliness, take steps to rein in the garbage mafia and find a solution to sanitary waste -these are not the words of an urban planner but a humble waste picker’s advice to Bengalureans. Mansoor Ahmed, 33, whose hard work fetched him a seat at the Paris climate conference, is back in the city, enlightened and overwhelmed. Still in awe of the French capital, he aims to make Bengaluru the Paris of India.
Mansoor, a waste picker from ward no 198, Jayanagar, collects dry waste from more than 1,000 houses. The passionate worker who spoke about low carbon strategies in the waste sector at the Paris summit has set a threefold agenda for Bengulureans: Keep your surroundings as clean as your house, keep a vigil on the garbage mafia by equipping each ward with cameras and find a way to effectively dispose sanitary waste.
While this is his vision for the city , Mansoor wishes to have a uniform for waste pickers, so that they feel as respectable as any other civic worker. “I have a team of 12 waste collectors and the job we do is exhausting. We show up at people’s doors at 5am and I don’t know how many residents even remember our faces. A uniform will make us feel better about ourselves,” said Mansoor.
The waste picker who doesn’t charge a single paisa for his contribution (he’s not paid by BBMP either) earns a living through his “donate dry waste project”.He collects around 25 tonnes of dry waste in a month and sells it to recycling companies, making enough money for his daily expenses.
“We still don’t have a solution for sanitary waste. We know what to do with dry waste and wet waste but with sanitary waste, we have no option but to burn it.Also, where does all of it go? Even I’m clueless. “I am not educated but still I’m passionate about keeping mine and others’ houses clean. Only if the literate follow what they have been taught in school, their education won’t go waste,” said Mansoor, signing off on a hopeful note.
Needed: A change in attitude
Asked what is the simplest thing he learnt from Paris conference that can be replicated here, Mansoor Ahmed said: “If people’s attitude changes, things will automatically change.When when we go to collect waste, residents are only bothered about the muck getting out of their homes. Whether it lands on the road or in a garbage dump is nobody’s concern. The garbage mafia is our biggest enemy; we should see that after the waste is picked up from a particular ward at 5am, no one uses it as a dumping ground.This can done only if the residents are vigilant and cameras are installed in wards”.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Bangalore / TNN / December 11th, 2015