CHANGE HAPPENS....ONE BUILDING AT A TIME

A subtle movement is creeping through Parle East since the last 6 months. Kolvankar Kaka has been the pioneer, visionary and guiding light of this movement. It has an equally impressive supporting cast of youngsters from Rotaract club. A number of enthusiastic Parlekars have joined in now. This group of garbage busters is called ‘Parle Clean- up Core’.

Devangini Society near Koldongari was Kaka’s laboratory where he carried out his ‘experiments with the truth’ about garbage management. Kaka is an architect. With his disarming mild manner and cheerful demeanour he was able to convince and train Devangini society members and staff to practise waste segregation. He implemented dry waste recycling and wet waste composting through vermiculture. This society now sends only minimal garbage to the landfill. They also earn some revenue through sale of dry waste and vermicompost. They have a lovely healthy garden in the society compound. All inside the premises of a standard space- starved building in the midst of Vile Parle East. Members are very busy and practically no staff has been hired. So the truth was revealed- building level waste management is possible inspite of the shortage of time, space and manpower. The Devangini team presented this truth to all of Parle in a presentation at Tilak Mandir last year. We all read Kaka’s pledge (previous posts). It was the beginning of this movement.

Through mutual consultation, core group members concluded that waste segregation is the most critical step for proper waste management and that this is best done at source. So ‘please segregate waste’ is the primary request that they are making. A letter and poster are being circulated through many societies in Parle. Many societies have taken great interest in this system and invited members of core group for presentation and consultation. Now a few elected representatives have also become supporters of this group. One milestone was achieved when simultaneously three meetings were held in Parle on 6^th Feb at different locations- the only agenda being waste management in parle. The meetings were attended by citizens and presentations were made about the principles and benefits of segregation. Group members would love to have more such meetings.

The clean up core group members hope to make Parle a zero garbage suburb, one building at a time.