Delhi’s waste pickers work without proper space, water supply and risk their health; their needs should be incorporated into the city’s masterplan, recommends report
The concerns of Delhi’s more than 200,000 people working as waste pickers should be incorporated into the city’s Masterplan 2041, a recent report by a non-profit organisation has said.
The waste pickers should be allotted proper space to segregate waste, regular water supply to clean themselves, their health should be monitored and they should be protected from discrimination, the study added.
Space for Waste – 2021 was released by non-profit organisation Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group September 17, 2021. It deals with the challenges faced by Delhi’s waste pickers in managing the mega city’s solid waste. The study was conducted in April this year.
Delhi currently produces 10,000 metric tonnes of garbage every day. This is expected to become two-fold as the city becomes more urbanised, the report said.
The report pointed out several aspects about the lives of waste pickers in the city.
Waste pickers told the study authors they required a space of 225-450 square feet for the segregation of waste. Currently, there is no such workspace for waste workers.
They carry out their work of segregation, repairing and composting at different locations. About 38 per cent of waste pickers work in dhalaos or municipal waste dumps, 17 per cent in landfills, 22 per cent at their homes, 10 per cent in rickshaws and 10 per cent on roads.
The waste pickers paid between Rs 400 and Rs 8,000 for the space they worked in, depending on the area used for segregation.
Second, the surveyed waste pickers travelled a distance of up to 19 km to collect waste from households or for segregation of waste. Those working in door-to-door collection, collected waste from 60-400 households.
They segregated at the dhalao and then carried dry waste to their homes for further segregation. A few segregated dry and wet waste in their rickshaw after door-to-door collection.
Third, waste pickers were exposed to a variety of toxins as they worked without protective equipment and were at the risk of water-borne diseases and infections. About 81 per cent complained of mosquito problems while 51 per cent expressed the difficulty of working in the monsoon.
Fourth, the social stigma attached to waste-work resulted in citizens bothering them or posing hindrances. They were often imperiled and disturbed by moving traffic. Fifth, a lack of availability of water at or near their workstation for cleaning and drinking purposes posed health and hygiene risks.
The study noted that while the Masterplan 2041 discussed solid waste management in detail, it did not encompass the ways in which waste workers were to be included in the process.
It was crucial that the gap between the real-time experiences and labour of waste workers and the facilities available for handling waste had to be addressed in the plan along with the implementation of Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.
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Waste pickers at the Ghazipur landfill in Delhi. Photo: Agnimirh Basu / CSE.png)
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