CLEAN CITIES, WITH THE MEDIA’S HELP

Mrs Almitra H Patel, MemberSupreme Court Committee for

Solid Waste Management

Advisor, Clean Jharkhand Projectalmitrapatel@rediffmail.com

India is blessed with a powerful and free press, radio & TV

It is believed and trusted by the citizens.

So it can play an important role in supporting President Kalam’s efforts to improve India’s self-esteem and provide positive role-models for our youth.

In many progressive Indian cities, the media has changed public

indifference to filth and inefficiency.

This is most successful when

highlighting small and large successes

of individuals and neighbourhood civic

experiments.

BBC’s program showing door-to-door waste collection

in Bangalore captured public imagination.

It inspired many neighbourhood groups allover India to copy this pattern and get rid of

unsightly waste-bins on streets.

It is catching on in Ranchi too, through Pocket Development Committees (PDCs)

GOOD NEWS SELLS !!

This was the most important message of the BBC

program and others like it.

Encouraging good efforts has now become

acceptable, even fashionable.

Reporters find that they need not be always

critical, always negative, in order to impress their

bosses and their readers with their impartiality.

Positive News helps enormously

Kottayam’s 100%-Literacy success is the best example.

The District Collector, Mr K J Alphons, got a quarter-page on page one of every local paper for his daily human-interest stories on newly-literate drop-outs, adults, grandmothers, which the public eagerly awaited.

Mumbai’s ALMs are also a media-assisted movement

Over 400 “Zero-Waste” colonies with

Advanced Locality Management have

sprung up after the pioneers’ successes were featured and new

ones regularly high-lighted.

ALMs first beautify, then clean up, then locally

compost, their area wastes.

“Wet” food wastes are daily collected door-to-door, and composted in neat sites.

“Dry” recyclable waste is sold or given as “kooda-daanam” to poor rag-pickers weekly, at the doorstep.

Ahmedabad’s SEWA is famous too

There, rag-pickers have formed a large

cooperative for organised and punctual

weekly door-to-door waste collection.

They also have their own savings and loan

“bank” for micro-credit to coop members.

Terrace-gardens grown on food wastes have also been highlighted.

This has made it possible for Pune to insist

on vermi - composting arrangements in

every group of high - rise apartments

before completion certificates are issued.

This is impossible without media support.

Bangalore features 1 Ward a week

Plus and minus points of the area’s infra-structure are highlighted.

A popular Box features the positive effortsand achievements of one outstanding hard-working citizen working for civic issues.

This has inspired otherwise passive and silent citizens to improve their areas too.

Ranchi already has 49 PDCs, all started by word-of-mouth demand.

An entrepreneur is cleaning 7 areas since 7 years, without publicity.

A street market plans self-help clean-up.

Local waste-points may soon be bio-

sanitised & odour-free as in Jamshedpur.

All this is enough material for a story a week on local achievers in

Ranchi and Jharkhand

These can convince the public that it is more

profitable to be pro-active and get involved

in a Clean City movement, than to simply

criticise non-performance while paying for

it in doctors’ bills and absenteeism from

school and work.

The choice is Ranchi’s,

with the media’s help.