A snapshot from the rally. Pic: Beedhi Vyaparigala Okkuta
Two hundred street vendors of HSR Layout Street Vendors’ Union and representatives of the Bruhat Bengaluru Beedi Vyapari Sanghatanegala Okkuta (A Federation of Street Vendor Unions in Bangalore) took part in a rally in HSR Layout to raise awareness on waste management and proper disposal of waste.
The ‘Swacchata Andolana’ was an initiative of the Union and the Federation (with support from the BBMP). In addition to disbursing material on waste management awareness, they are cleared three blackspots in the area, i.e. a garbage dump on 27th main, one at Agara and another at Parangipalya.
Participants clearing a blackspot. Pic: Beedhi Vyaparigala Okkuta
Participants pose with the segregated waste after cleaning the blackspots. Pic: Beedhi Vyaparigala Okkuta
This rally took place in three contexts – one, that each person is responsible for the waste they generate; two, that disposal of waste is not the responsibility of pourakarmikas alone and that the street vendors stand in solidarity with the pourakarmikas to cooperate and help manage waste better; three, in solidarity of the residents’ protest against Karnataka Compost Development Corporation (KCDC) seeking proper disposal of waste.
The street vendors believe that everyone must take responsibility of the waste they generate and ensure its proper disposal, so that residents of Mavallipura, Mandur, or Somasundarapalya are not inconvenienced at the behest of those citizens who generate tonnes of waste from their households, shops, hotels and carts.
After the rally and the spotfixes, the vendors vouched to go the green way and use proper methods to efficiently dispose their waste. They will be putting up wet waste and dry waste bins around their vending areas to help the pourakarmikas dispose of the waste correctly.
The rally was all about taking responsibility and ownership of the waste every one generates and to ensure that other citizens are not inconvenienced.
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