CLEAN CITIES, WITH THE MEDIA

1
CLEAN CITIES, WITH THE MEDIAS HELP

• Mrs Almitra H Patel, Member
• Supreme Court Committee for Solid Waste
  Management
• Advisor, Clean Jharkhand Project
• almitrapatel_at_rediffmail.com

2
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 Kalams efforts to improve Indias
  self-esteem and provide positive role-models for
  our youth.

3
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.

4
BBCs program showing door-to-door waste
collection in Bangalore captured public
imagination.

• It inspired many neighbourhood groups all
• over 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)

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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.

6
Positive News helps enormously

• Kottayams 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.

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Mumbais 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.

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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.

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Ahmedabads 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.

10
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.

11
Bangalore features 1 Ward a week

• Plus and minus points of the areas infra-
• structure are highlighted.
• A popular Box features the positive efforts
• and achievements of one outstanding hard-
• working citizen working for civic issues.
• This has inspired otherwise passive and
• silent citizens to improve their areas too.

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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.

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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.

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The choice is Ranchis, with the medias help.