Online campaign launched against kitchen pulverisers

An online campaign called #KitchenPulveriserBeda was launched against the mandatory installation of pulverisers or food crushers in the city.

Mayor R Sampath Raj had announced sometime ago that the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will eventually make kitchen pulverisers mandatory for all new households and hotels to reduce the amount of garbage generated.

However, solid waste management experts believe that this process requires adequate water which will be difficult in the city which is facing acute water shortage. "The process of pulverising food requires a lot of water. At least 10-21 litres of water is required to push it from the source and some more to force it down the drain," said a senior solid waste management expert.

Nagesh Aras, another solid waste management expert who started the online campaign said the process will eventually affect the functioning of sewage treatment plants (STPs) also. "The BBMP basically found this idea interesting because they thought they could reduce wet waste to a certain extent. STPs are not designed to handle this type of waste water and may become dysfunctional. The fatty foods contain oils that might form foam and it might even attract cockroaches that might carry diseases such as cholera and leprosy," he said.

Composting waste directly is more efficient because it requires less energy unlike STPs, which consume a lot of energy.

He also said that once the campaign garners more than 500 signatures, he would submit the petition to the mayor.

What is a kitchen pulveriser?

It is an electric grinder which helps crush the food waste into liquid form.