As residents of the RWA – Residents of Kasturba Nagar Association (ROKA) came to the end of Phase 1 of the project ‘We Segregate’, they partook in a line-up of community activities with an emphasis on their core vision – Solid Waste Management.
Conducted as part of the ‘We Segregate’ project funded by TCI (The Circulate Initiative) through an IIT incubated research company called Okapi Research and Advisory Pvt Ltd, the activities started with a bang – a cricket match on Mar.10. Residents – young and old, men, women and children, huddled on the Sunday morning to hit the ball beyond the boundary. Pre-event activities, which included a waste audit bingo and a crossword puzzle, helped propagate the theme of SWM. For the cricket match, the participants were divided into 3 teams – in line with the 3 colours of segregation. “This activity provided a great opportunity to discuss waste segregation,” explained Janani Venkitesh, Secretary of ROKA. M.D.Pradeep, inspector of Police (Crime Branch – Pazhavanthangal Police Station) iterated on the importance of sports in everyone’s life as much as the need to conserve the environment.
In the next, a residents’ meet was organised where nearly 50 residents brainstormed ideas to sustain the project. The session also included presentations, fun games, an online quiz, experience sharing, etc. “It was music to the ears when a resident Ms.Srimathi said home composting was therapeutic. Other residents like Ms.Raji came up with fabulous ideas to sustain segregation at the apartment level. It was a heartening experience for all of us,” said P.Saranya, Treasurer of ROKA.
The winners from the competitions were presented with gift vouchers from a sustainability store, Pracheen Vidhaan. The winning cricket team was felicitated with medals made from coconut shells. “This was yet another step to demonstrate sustainability, thanks to Arjun from Crazy Coconut who came up with this idea and made it possible,” said Saranya. At both events, healthy snacks (Buttermilk and traditional rice laddoo; Sundal and coconut water) were provided in reusable cutlery.
ROKA, with support from OKAPI, has installed three lane composters in Kasturba Nagar, as part of the ‘We Segregate’ project. The composters, launched in October 2023, were built with a capacity to compost 750 kgs of wet waste each. In February and March 2024, the community reaped the benefit of the composters as they harvested the compost, which was distributed to the residents of Kasturba Nagar. In addition, soft plastics are collected as part of the project in the Punch the Plastic Hooks (PTP hooks), a design by the students of the IIT-M.
ROKA can be contacted at 97911 03797; Crazy Coconut can be contacted at 88385 44494; Pracheen Vidhan www.praacheenvidhaan.com.
