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NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND PANCHAYATI RAJ Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India No: 281 PRAGATI Newsletter October 2018

A tentative end to the debate on ‘Waste to Wealth’ PRAGATI,PRAGATI, OOctoberctober 20120188 1 NIRDPRNIRDPR A tentative end to the debate on 3 ‘Waste to Wealth’

CONTENTS

7 15 18 Improving quality of education Regional ToT programme on NIRDPR to introduce a diploma in public schools through Little Strategies for E-Governance for programme on Panchayati Leaders - Little Teachers Better Service Delivery Raj Governance and Rural concept : A model by Development Vandemataram Foundation

12 16 19 Strengthening decentralised Exposure-cum-training visit by Dr. P. R. Ghanate delivers lecture democracy - Interview with delegation from the Northern on Shri Munshi Premchand’s Prof. M.A. Oommen, Honorary Provincial Council, Sri Lanka novel ‘Godaan’ Fellow, Centre for Development Studies, Trivandrum

13 17 19 Prof. Umesh Arya delivers Off -campus training programme NIRDPR Events lecture on neuro-linguistic on ICT Applications for programming Implementation of Rural Development Programmes

PRAGATI, October 2018 2 NIRDPR ‰ COVER STORY

A tentative end to the debate on ‘Waste to Wealth’ Photo credits: WBASJ

he Government of India provides capital Panchayat. The onus of fi nding funds such as plastics, bottles, cardboards and Tcost to set up Solid Waste Management for operational expenses (such as salary papers can be sold out to recyclers, do all (SWM) units in Gram Panchayats (GPs). of garbage collectors, maintenance of these hand enough money to meet the The GPs have to generate own revenue waste collection vehicles, etc.), shall rest operational expenses? Waste collection sources to be able to meet the operational with the Gram Panchayat, except that and processing is a labour-intensive expenses. The logic put forth by some of there are IEC funds in order to educate proposition. Once it starts and a system the SWM consultants is that it is possible and prepare communities for household is put in place, it has to go on regularly. to generate suffi cient income, converting level waste segregation. There shall There is a lot of physical work, logistics ‘waste into wealth’. This has sparked off be no funds made available from the and coordination to be done. It involves a debate on the grounds that the idea of government’s side for meeting the actual supervision, planning, execution, converting waste into wealth has many operational expenses of the SWM units. monitoring and so on, which involve serious limitations to overcome. Moreover, One argument is, waste is not waste wages/salaries. Some enthusiastic even if a Gram Panchayat managed and it’s only a perception, meaning it’s Elected Representatives (ERs) started off converting all the garbage collected possible to covert waste into usable waste management units in their Gram into usable/saleable items, does it off er compost, reusable and recyclable items Panchayats, fascinated by the idea of a breakeven? A series of case studies [of which can become a source of income converting waste into wealth - passed on SWM units across States]conducted by for Gram Panchayats to meet their by some experts in a training hall - gave the NIRDPR has come out with a tentative operational expenses. This has sparked up no sooner than they started because conclusion to this debate. off a debate that fi rst of all, the idea of they found expenses are far more than income they could generate from such When toilet coverage in rural areas converting waste into wealth has many units. Such examples scare away others is crossing well over 96 per cent, the serious physical and technical limitations from making any such attempts. next big thing coming up in rural areas to overcome, and hurdles that put you [a under Swachh Bharat Mission (G) is Gram Panchayat] off . Secondly, even if How do we end this debate? Waste Solid Waste Management (SWM). The the Gram Panchayat managed to convert management has to take place for it is SWM component has been designed all the garbage collected into usable/ becoming a medical emergency from in a specifi c way in the guidelines of saleable items, does it off er a breakeven? the point of view of health. Further, it is SBM-G is which the government shall The debate goes like this. While more an expression of cultural practice provide capital cost for setting up the it is true that kitchen waste can be and quality of mindset, than a matter of SWM units – ranging from ` 7 lakh to composted, or converted into bio- visual aesthetics. Our perspective and ` 20 lakh, based on the size of the Gram methane gas for cooking and items reasoning may diff er, but the fact remains

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that none of us want to live on a pile of GP runs an RO plant for drinking water months was ` 35.28 lakh, and the income garbage. Garbage must be collected supply. This was set up by the Gram from converted wealth, including the regularly and disposed scientifi cally, Panchayat and is operated by the local user fees collected add up to ` 12 lakh. regardless of it being understood as SHG women. The commission (share There is a big gap between income wealth or waste or for-profi t or as a from the profi t) that the GP gets from the and expenditure. The loss incurred is civic duty of a Gram Panchayat. The SHGs helps the GP to compensate the recouped by the respective chairpersons/ point is, a waste management system loss incurred in running the solid waste members of Board of various companies introduced must be sustainable in the management unit. Thus, the SWM unit in Coimbatore, who are friends of the GP long run. Waste management cannot be is running successfully through a cross- president (a local politician). At times, the a project with an end-date. Case studies subsidy model like this. DRDA also helps through some funding conducted by NIRDPR across States off er Case–2: Kurudampalayam Gram to uphold the name DRDA Coimbatore a tentative answer to this debate on Panchayat (near Coimbatore), Tamil has earned because of this SWM unit. wealth to waste. Four brief case studies Nadu: This GP is located very close to Case–3: Brahmanagar Samabay are presented below to unfold and fi nd Coimbatore city in Tamil Nadu. It has Krishi Unnayan Samity Ltd., Ruipukur, out what insights these stories can reveal. 14 wards with a population of about Nadia, West Bengal: This is a multi-purpose Case – 1: Mudichur Gram Panchayat 33,000 people which would amount to cooperative society in Krishnanagar- (near Chennai), Tamil Nadu: This is 11,360 households. There are marriage Block 1 of Nadia district, West Bengal. almost at the outer ring of Chennai. halls, restaurants, shops and other The secretary of this society took up the Total population is 15,000 (2011) and the establishments. SWM unit here was set lead to set up solid waste management number of households is 5326 (2012). up in the year 2013. The amount of waste unit in Ruipukur GP. Ruipukur has 21 There are 12 wards with 209 streets and generated (in eight of the wards) is 800 Sansads, whereas SWM activity was taken lanes. There are more than 520 shops and kgs per day. The GP had covered only up only in three Sansads covering 400 two marriage halls. SWM system here eight wards at the time of conducting this households. The main activity undertaken has been put in place about 7–8 years case study. is making vermicompost from kitchen ago by the Gram Panchayat with waste and sale of earthworms. They the help of an NGO called Hand-in- do not look for recyclable items from Hand in Kancheepuram with the ` dry waste because of the culture in support of DRDA. The NGO played The message should not be: You create most West Bengal villages where the an instrumental role in initial setting waste, we are here to manage, rather it must households preserve the recyclables up and evolving a management be to move towards progressive reduction of to be sold to kabadiwalas, who visit model. The NGO trained 26 sanitation waste from being generated in the fi rst place them once in a fortnight or so. The workers [‘Green Friends’, as they a dry wastes that the waste collectors of SWM unit get are all residual waste are locally known], including one that cannot be put to any use. There supervisor, and one person taking is no income that can be counted on from care of the vermi-compost unit. The The basic approach at such dry wastes. total average monthly operational Kurudampalayam SWM unit is that any expenditure reported is ` 1.6 lakh and the waste can be converted into wealth. The The main sources of income are average expenditure reported is ` 1.3 lakh. GP is very liberal about collecting user sale of vermicompost and earthworms. Major portion of the incomes comes from charges. The GP president, who is the There are nine workers and three tricycles households and shops that pay monthly torchbearer of this eff ort, believes that involved. The workers are engaged user fees. Income from the sale of vermi- waste to wealth shall pay off the entire in door-to-door waste collection and compost is hardly ` 3000 per month, and expenditure incurred in due course. There vermicompost. The workers are trained the GP has the practice of bestowing are many products produced from waste. in making vermicompost by Bidhan the Green Friends with incentives by They include vermicompost, vermiwash, Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya (BCKV). giving back whatever sale proceeds they ordinary compost, earthworms, The total annual expenditure reported get after the sale of dry wastes such as panchakayam, cleaning powder from is ` 5.4 lakh and the income reported is plastics and bottles. A point to note here orange peels, eggshell powder, eggs ` 2.05 lakh. Since this is managed by a is, a considerable number of shops and from ducks, and biogas generated for cooperative society, they have not given households do not pay. The GP does not cooking food to the workers, etc. The a thought about collecting user charges, insist on their paying. In Mudichur, the expenditure incurred in the last six meaning no user charge is collected. The

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cooperative society is incurring a big loss ` 44,161, which is hardly due to SWM activity. Yet, it is running 15 per cent of the total because of the interest the secretary of income. The remaining 85 the society has in producing and selling per cent has come from vermicompost, in the interest of organic user charges collected from farming. This is again a cross-subsidy households, shops and model. The loss incurred is made good restaurants. Yet, there has by the surplus earned by the cooperative, been a small gap between otherwise. income and expenditure, Case – 4: Pratapadityanagar Eco Park which is being met out in South 24 Parganas District, West Bengal. of the own funds of the This is a large Panchayat with a population Gram Panchayat. The GP of about 33,000 (7500 households). This vice-president and the Eco Park is close to Kakdwip and so is staff appointed by the West almost a Town Panchayat. It has 21 Gram Bengal State Government Sansads, several shops and market areas. in the Gram Panchayat A local burial ground has been converted offi ce are confi dent that a as the location for waste segregation and strict follow-up of user charge collection (i) Three of the four GPs studied processing unit. The initiative came from can help achieve breakeven and it can are located close to cities, which the vice-president of the Panchayat. are almost like town Panchayats. also help expand SWM activities to other This SWM unit was started in 2016 Village at the vicinity of cities and wards of the GP too. with technical assistance from a local towns tend to generate more waste NGO called: Amara Sushama Jalaprapat Pratapadityanagar Gram Panchayat compared to the ones that are from Tamluk, East Midnapore. There in South 24 Parganas in West Bengal remote and interior. stands as a proof in support of the are 40 workers and a supervisor. There (ii) All the four SWM units studied statement that it’s possible to meet the are 11 tricycles and three mini vans have the backing of not only BDO involved in waste collection. Two of the expenditure incurred in solid waste or DRDA, but also NGOs/Societies/ mini vans are regularly hired and paid management by proper collection of user (Corporates) CSRs, who are willing monthly on the basis of trips made. charges regularly; and that converting to off er technical guidance and at Kitchen waste collected from households waste into wealth can contribute only times, fi nancial support as well. and restaurants are composted (both a small portion of the expenditure, (iii) Three of the GPs collect user charges, vermicompost and ordinary compost). which is 15 per cent in the case of whereas the one located in a typical They sell a killogram at ` 10 and ` 6, Pratapadityanagar Gram Panchayat. Indian village setting (Ruipukur, respectively. The dry wastes (such as Naida, WB), does not collect user plastics, bottles, cardboards) are sold Let’s get back to our debate charges. Even in GPs where user to recyclers. As per the Panchayat’s Waste collection from the point of charges are collected, not all the resolution, all the households, shops, view of doing ‘good’ to the environment households pay user charges. restaurants, marriage halls, vegetable or as a medical necessity is admirable. and petal leaf markets, etc., pay monthly However, the debate here is about (iv) In all the three GPs where waste to user charges at diff erent rates as decided fi nancial sustainability of these units wealth is attempted, the highest by the Gram Sabha. Payment from the contribution to SWM unit’s kitty comes in the long run, especially when it is entire category of service-users is regular. from user charges and hardly 15–20 pretty clear that operational expenses There are destitute households that live per cent comes from the ‘waste to have to be met by the Gram Panchayats on government pension. They have been wealth’ activities, be it from the sale through own revenue sources, be it from exempted from paying the user fee. of vermicompost or sale of recyclable converting waste to wealth or any other items. The payment from waste to The total monthly income reported means. wealth eff orts is very minimal. (for September, 2018) is ` 2.84 lakh. The expenditure incurred for September is Some of the commonalities and (v) The idea of making products ` 2.97 lakh. The contribution from the sale insights we draw from all the four cases from waste materials, beyond of vermicompost and other dry wastes is we studied above are: vermicompost and ordinary compost

PRAGATI, October 2018 5 NIRDPR for instance, washing powder from from; and what kind of expenses are 1. Let’s begin in villages that are orange peels or eggshell powder inevitable at all. A very crucial question close to cities and towns, where from eggshells, etc., are good, that every GP functionary who is about people strongly feel waste as a real but there is a need for additional to take-up waste management activity problem. The chances of gaining expenditure, even if we play down should ask himself/herself is: What is my fi rm grounding is high in villages the issue of the eff orts required to take on clean village? In other words, is where people already feel that it’s a problem. market such products (eg., Case my purpose, a clean village or reorienting Study 2). At Pratapadityanagar (WB), my village to get involved in waste 2. A budgeting exercise at the GP they do only vermicomposting management business, keeping all other level seems to be a must. It allows works of a GP in a cold storage. and ordinary composting; and the a mental dry run of how much is recyclable items are sold to the ‘Solid waste management’ is an likely to be the expenditure, to recyclers. They largely depend on important component that must go into determine which category of users shall pay how much user charge user charges, which is forthcoming. the Gram Panchayat Development Plan so that up to 80-85 per cent of the The gap perhaps, is because nearly (GPDP). It’s good and it is prepared in the expenditure incurred is collected 104 destitute families and small form of a viable business model, meaning it must pay for itself, at least within a through user charges. Many SWM shopkeepers have been exempted period of 2 to 3 years. Therefore, whatever units were closed down after a short from paying user charges, which perspective a Gram Panchayat can adopt stint, especially because the GPs is a conscious decision by the on generating a business model with functionaries were drawn into it with Gram Panchayat. Otherwise, regard to waste management, it should the idea of waste-to-wealth, without Pratapadityanagar GP proves that it’s be a model that creates value to the having done any exercise on the possible to breakeven if we properly citizens and something that people are likely operational expenditure. collect user charges at diff erential willing to pay for. Waste management 3. Determine deferential rates for rates from diff erent categories at the GP level must be viewed like a diff erent categories of users of waste of service users. Perhaps, this is social enterprise. The intent is not profi t, collection service (households, possible in all the other three GPs but common good at an economic shops, restaurants, marriage halls, also, provided the ERs are willing to breakeven. Thus, the insights we get from and other establishments) and have charge the users. Secondly, the GPs case studies across States are illuminating it approved by the Gram Sabha. need to pay attention on reducing to unpack and end this debate. 4. Identify an NGO or an institution the expenses by prudent waste I don’t get into answering if there with experience/expertise in waste collection arrangement and simplify is enough wealth in waste or not. After management to mentor/guide the rather than complicate the ideas of studying so many cases on the ground, GPs. waste to wealth. my humble interpretation of ‘waste into 5. Realise that waste management wealth’ is that it is an overstatement. I (vi) Finally and most importantly, one is more a socio-psychological shall get into a limitless experimentation needs to take note of the fact that problem, rather than a problem that of waste into wealth if someone, other a GP exists not only to manage technologies can solve. Simplify and than the Gram Panchayat, is ready to foot waste or keep the village clean, build a strong management system. the bill. What is clear as of now, not very but there are several other socio- innovative though, is the possibility to 6. There must be IEC activities economic development functions a meet the operational expenses, provided taking place for household level GP has to take up and implement. the ERs are willing to charge the users waste segregation. Let them take Waste management should not for the service – every household, every responsibility. Consider seriously overshadow the other development shop, every restaurant, etc., must pay the possibility of preparing works a GP is supposed to take up. user charge. Two cases (case – 1 & 2) the households towards home composting. Let them manage the Tentative conclusion to the debate indicated it, and the last one (case - 4) emphatically put it. A corollary to this is kitchen waste and the dry waste As a matter of fact, operational that the users are willing to pay, provided can be collected once a week by our expenses need not scare away Gram GPs are able to demonstrate at least in a sanitation workers. Panchayats from taking up waste few wards, to begin with, by putting in Dr. R Ramesh management. All that is required is a place a functional waste management Associate Professor, CRI pragmatic understanding of waste to system. Something that works, is regular & wealth - not an overstated one, neither a and reliable. Prof. P SivaRam fantasised one. Gram Panchayats should Head, CRI Some lessons we can distil from these follow a no-nonsense approach when it Cover Page Illustration: case studies are presented for easy grasp. comes to estimating where income fl ows Shri V G Bhat

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