Letters: Focus on reducing waste

Govindraj Ethiraj's article, "Designing Swachh Bharat differently" (November 24) was an interesting read. I am in agreement with the writer's basic aversion to designing the programme from out of policy pigeonholes like other government initiatives. But the article revolves around the general obsession with cleaning rather than the cause of garbage. The most important aspect of garbage is its generation, but this is being ignored by all and sundry in the excitement over the Swachh Bharat campaign.

India is basically a poor country, but like most developed nations, the majority of the garbage here is generated by the rich and powerful. The United States is the largest per capita garbage generator. Rich societies produce more waste because they can do without the leftovers. That the rich may be educated generally makes a poor case for arguing that they would not produce much garbage. On the other hand, living in poverty means every bit of resource has to be reused, recycled or utilised in other ways.

Government policy needs to be reworked to focus on garbage generation rather than cleaning. First, rag-pickers should be integrated with the Swachh Bharat campaign. It is time we called them eco-saviours. Second, the rich and educated should be sensitised to buy and consume things in a way that generates minimum waste. Third, the manufacturing sector should be sensitised about minimising the use of packing material.

Consider this: A biscuit packet has three layers of packaging; a family which buys milk packets generates 365 such packets a year; most sanitary napkin materials are non-biodegradable. The cycle of unnecessary packaging, overbuying and consumption and disposing the waste on the road for the government to clean it all up by starting a campaign around it does not help. The government should reward manufacturers who minimise packaging and impose a garbage tax on citizens living in organised housing blocks. Schoolchildren should be taught to live an eco-friendly life through the judicious buying and usage of materials.

D P Ghatak Durgapur

Letters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:
The Editor, Business Standard
Nehru House, 4 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg
New Delhi 110 002
Fax: (011) 23720201
E-mail: letters@bsmail.in
All letters must have a postal address and telephone number