Now, Mysureans can convert dry waste into money

Soon, residents of the city, as well as the civic workers of the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC), can earn some extra money from recyclable dry solid waste.

The Indian Tobacco Company (ITC) has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the MCC to buy recyclable dry solid waste generated in the city, after proper segregation at the source. As a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, ITC has taken up the task of creating awareness among people by providing financial incentives. ITC will hire volunteers who would visit all houses in the city limits to educate people about the proper segregation and disposal of waste. Separate bags will be provided to all the households to put the recyclable waste in.

The MCC civic workers, who are involved in the door to door collection of garbage and its transportation, can collect their incentives by handing over the segregated waste at any of the 47 waste management units spread across the city, said Afsar Ahmad, head of the project in Karnataka.

MCC Health Officer Dr D G Nagaraj said the project will be implemented in the city in phases. "Initially, it will be started in the areas under one zone of the MCC. Later, it will be extended to all the zones and the 65 wards of the entire city. At present, 400 to 450 tonnes of waste is generated in the city daily. Out of this, at least 40% is dry solid waste," he said.