more-in In a first for a grama panchayat in the district, the Manickal grama panchayat recently set up a plastic-shredding unit, setting an example in solid-waste management. The unit, set up on a 50-cent plot on the premises of the Santhigiri Ashram at Pothencode, will be used to shred the plastic waste collected from the entire panchayat as well as from the ashram premises. It was constructed on the basis of a 25-year lease agreement between the panchayat and the ashram, under which the latter will undertake the running and maintenance of the shredding unit, while the local body is responsible for collection of plastic waste from within its limits. ?25-lakh project The ?25-lakh project had been on the anvil since 2014, said K. Jayan, vice president of the grama panchayat. However, finding sufficient land for building the unit was an obstacle. Financial feasibility was also a concern as it was estimated to cost up to ?75 to shred a kg of plastic. A solution for this presented itself when it came to the attention of the panchayat that the Santhigiri ashram was facing trouble in scientifically handling the plastic waste generated on its premises, he said. Hence, the idea of setting up the unit on the ashram premises was mooted. The plan was to sell the shredded plastic to the Clean Kerala Company. The possibility of expanding the unit to facilitate collection of plastic from other panchayats would be considered after a few months of running the unit, Mr. Jayan said. For road tarring This might, in turn, enable the use of shredded plastic for tarring roads, provided the availability of sufficient quantity of plastic. The plastic collection would be undertaken by Kudumbasree workers, with one worker each from each of the 21 wards in the panchayat being recruited for the purpose. The workers would undertake door-to-door collection on a monthly basis, charging a fee of ?30 per household. Five additional Kudumbasree members would coordinate the activity at the panchayat-level, he said. The panchayat has approximately 15,000 households. Training The workers attended a training workshop on plastic collection, held in association with Suchitwa Mission, on June 19. While the grama panchayat would support them for the first six months, they were expected to carry out the work on their own after that, said Mr. Jayan. This is also a part of the panchayat’s Sthree Souhrida programme, under which it plans to foster women entrepreneurs. Further training in activities such as vermi-composting, management of biogas plants, and cloth bag manufacturing are on the anvil, hence achieving the twin goals of sustainable waste management as well as women’s empowerment.

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