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Hailing the Tamil Nadu model of solid and liquid waste management system, the Centre today said it would take steps to "replicate" the southern state's successful initiative in rural habitations across the country.
Union Minister of Rural Development, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water and Sanitation, Narendra Singh Tomar said this at a press conference held on the sidelines of the BRICS Conference on Participatory Local Budgeting here.
The minister said around 9,000 villages in Tamil Nadu had successfully implemented the solid waste management system based on the "waste to wealth" concept.
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The revenue generation model of Tamil Nadu would help generate additional income for Gram Panchayats under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission, which also ensures additional income to people in rural areas, he said.
"Our effort is to replicate Tamil Nadu model at other places," said Tomar.
He said villages in Tamil Nadu used funds allocated from Centre's Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, Clean India Mission and funds provided by the state government for converting solid waste to fertilisers and other wealth.
Tomar said implementation of effective solid and liquid waste management system in villages across the country is a key to the success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ambitious Clean India Mission.
Ministry officials attending the conference said Gram Panchayats in Tamil Nadu produce fertilisers from bio waste after segregating waste at community level.
The villages have raised a lot of money from waste management, making it a successful source of revenue for them.
The government's move comes in the wake of various studies by agencies like UNICEF, which have pointed out that waste is a severe threat to the public health concern and cleanliness in rural India.
Though the form of waste (both solid and liquid) generated in rural areas is predominantly organic and biodegradable, it is becoming a major problem to the overall sustainability of the ecological balance.
It is estimated that rural people in India generate liquid waste (grey water) of 15,000 to 18,000 million litres and solid waste (organic/recyclable) 0.3 to 0.4 million metric tons per day respectively.
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Tomar said the Centre was keen on prioritising waste
management.
"Panchayats in Tamil Nadu are generating income from waste management and this can be adopted across the nation. They convert the waste to fertilisers and the inconvertible ones are sold," he said.
The Union minister said this model has been implemented in 9,000 villages and generate around Rs 40 lakhs from the whole process.
Tomar also expressed hope that implementation of the Tamil Nadu model initiativewould eventually help alleviate poverty.
The conference, organised by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, has participation from delegates from Brazil, Russia and China apart from officials of civic bodies from different Indian states.
"Local bodies should be empowered for sustained and comprehensive development of nation. Hence, the Union government has earmarked Rs two lakh crores for Panchayats.The fund should be efficiently utilised for better projects aiming the upliftment of rural India," the minister said.
He said the government would organise training programmes for all panchayat members across India.
Minister of State, Panchayati Raj, Parsottambhai Rupala, said though participatory budgeting and decentralisation of India has grabbed international interest over the years, the conference aims to initiate dialogues and understand international practises.
Vinay Sahsrabuddhe,MP, while delivering the key-note address, said democracy without public participation is like a temple without an idol.
K T Jaleel, Minister, Local Self Government Department of Kerala, highlighted the importance of Mahatma Gandhi and decentralisation concept.
"We have a good system of decentralisation with Grama Sabhas. The concept itself was coined by Mahatma Gandhi who urged for self sufficiency of villages. And India is following his path," he said.
