Pune: Waste pickers of the SWaCH cooperative implemented the ‘Nirmalya to Nisarg’ (offerings to nature) initiative during Ganeshotsav this year, which connects the festival with conservation efforts, at over 50 immersion sites and centres. On Sept 2 and 6, the waste pickers collected and sorted 114 tonnes of nirmalya (offerings made to the deity) in total. Additionally, 39 tonnes of dry waste were collected separately. The collected nirmalya was handed over to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) for composting.A statement issued by SWaCH on Sunday stated that over 400 waste pickers were ready for this task across the city. On Sept 2 (Gauri Visarjan) and Sept 6 (Anant Chaturdashi), they collected and sorted nirmalya such as flowers, garlands, coconuts, and durva, along with dry waste like plastic bags, decorations, and sweet boxes. Started in 2009 with a few selected ghats, this initiative was implemented consistently for the past 15 years and has now become an integral part of Pune’s Ganeshotsav.“The waste pickers stayed at the immersion centres late into the night on both days, continuing their nirmalya collection work. The proposed door-to-door, mechanised garbage collection system by the PMC endangers the jobs of thousands of waste pickers. The SWaCH waste pickers took responsibility for creating an environment-friendly Ganeshotsav, making their participation even more inspiring this year,” added the statement.“We celebrate the festival together with the public. Even though the certainty of our work is not being clearly assured, we were present at the immersion centres with the PMC for the city. People give us prasad every year and include us in the aarti. While we meet in a hurry when we collect waste at the door every day, during the immersion, we are included in the festival. The tradition of preserving our city’s inclusive culture has been strengthened by the nirmalya collection initiative,” said Sarika Karadkar, board member, SWaCH Pune Seva Sahakari Sanstha, in the statement.
