Reflecting on our impactful workshop on waste management and
regenerative agriculture. The workshop titled ‘Waste to Wealth’ took place at IISER (Indian Institute of Science Education and Research)
Kolkata, Kalyani Campus in collaboration with RISE, IISER and Contact Base
(trading style: banglanatak dot com).
Esteemed speakers like Mr. Imteyaz Ali,
Managing Director of Sarthak Sanstha, Mr. Suman Mukhopadhyay Director, Contact
Base, Mr. Saumya Sen of Naandi Foundation shed light on how regenerative
agriculture and innovative waste management practices can spur new
entrepreneurial ventures that promote environmental sustainability by creating
circular economies, reducing waste, and enhancing soil health for future
generations.
People from diverse sectors including corporates, small-scale
entrepreneurs, district administration, and academic experts attended the
workshop. Participants learned innovative techniques for reducing waste and
enhancing soil health, promoting a more ecologically sustainable tomorrow. By
embracing these practices, the workshop aimed at fostering a community
dedicated to environmental stewardship, ensuring cleaner cities and healthier
ecosystems.
The event not only educated but also inspired collective action
towards a greener future, highlighting the importance of sustainable living for
the well-being of our planet. The details of the discussions and agreed upon
recommendations are given below.
Welcome Speech by The Research
Innovation and Scientific Entrepreneurship (RISE) IISER
Prof Sayam Sengupta, faculty in the Department of Chemical Sciences
at IISER Kolkata and Director of RISE delivered the welcome address. He spoke
about the IISER’s mission to evolve as a premier institute to ensure quality
higher education in the field of science and detailed on how RISE emerged as a
nodal hub to promote science-based entrepreneurship, achieving application of science
in the truest sense. He concluded by
expressing RISE’s willingness to support actions and ventures with regard to
responsible waste management and ushering other environmentally sustainable
practices.
1. Workshop
on Waste to Wealth by Imteyaz Ali, Managing Director, Sarthak Sanstha
Imteyaz Ali started the workshop by citing Madhya Pradesh’ instance
as one of the pioneering Indian states to functionalize an entire system of
waste management, which has made Indore win the tag of the cleanest city for
the last seven years and Bhopal, the cleanest capital. He asserted that out of
the top 100 clean cities in India, a whooping 23 of them are located in Madhya
Pradesh and this has been possible because of the integrated system of waste
management operational in the state, which has streamlined collection,
recycling and reuse of waste in the most effective manner. However, he
mentioned that the model of waste management did not get operationalized in MP
overnight; it took over a decade’s hard work and dedication to counter the
problems arising out of unconscious waste accumulation.
With regard to Kalyani’s extant
waste disposal mechanism, he said that proper segregation of waste is not into
place. While the mount of mixed waste keeps on increasing in the dumpyards
creating various health and environmental hazards, the residents’ lack
awareness on proper waste management mechanisms. Many households, while giving
mixed waste for collection, sell the valuable waste items as scraps, thereby
leading to accumulation of waste, which have little to no processing value. As
a result, the administrators at present mostly opt for burning the accumulated
waste, thereby releasing toxic gases in the environment, which create climatic
and health hazards.
As a way out, Imteyaz Ali shared
his organization Sarthak’s model of waste management. To ensure proper
segregation of waste into dry and wet, the model starts by building awareness
of community members on ways to segregate waste. From the collection centres,
segregated waste will reach the waste processing units, where the waste will be
treated and converted into different raw materials used in road construction,
cement industry, furniture making, etc. To ensure routine collection and
tracking of the collection process, Sarthak has also come up with mobile
application which tracks the movement of GPS attached waste collection vans. Imteyaz
Ali stated that often waste management takes a backseat due to conflicting
agenda and policy formulation mechanisms operative in the state and national
level. He said that waste management efforts should take into consideration the
population, demographics and orientation of the residents of the waste
collecting site. Along with awareness building and influencing behaviour
change, the waste management system must also incorporate the agenda of
socio-economic improvement of the rag pickers to ensure sustained waste
management without external support. He concluded by saying the role of
emerging technologies not only with regard to effective treatment of waste but
also for segregation of waste.
Discussions
BDO of Haringhata – Ms. Mahasweta Biswas – She said in favour of
every Gram Panchayat having a functional solid waste management unit. She also
shared about their recent efforts in initiating a waste management unit in
Birohi II Gram Panchayat, which is still in the process of getting
operationalized. At present, local administrators are engaged in building
awareness of community members with regard to effective waste management and
she said that they have planned to keep a system of user fee to make waste
collection and processing sustainable.
-
Deputy Chief Electrical Officer and Former SDO
of Bongaon Subdivision – Dr. Kakuli Mukherjee – She shared her experience of an
operational waste management unit in Sindrani Gram Panchayat, which started
under her supervision in 2017. The local administrators during that time
trained local women in making different products like coasters, bags out of fibres
of water hyacinths. The formed women collective was the first industrial
co-operative on waste management in West Bengal. She said that the waste
management mechanism was operational in 11 GPs out of the total 26 GPs under
her jurisdiction, which helped her to evaluate the impact of waste management in
operational areas in comparison to the ones, which did not have a waste
disposal mechanism at place. While the programme started with local
administrators in 2017, community participation has sustained the endeavour
even in today’s time. Representatives of the women collective also expressed
their experience on stage.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji265siIcHYHL9LS1GccrbyVOrY3_Nw9V7bF2pIYKB-60i6boloIyZEAPPK-4vXUp2L9JI1UZH9jj1aifTqqaU2Y5cXC0VJ9D80cgZ-AFiRGiP2cXKfhoaQgrpCMwCJIZcXr-K3JTKHNGHacqVvHb1HSnh7RGPxTslxx_VTZ9KpFaH_USbaVIXszjFDifH/w400-h268/DSC_5234.JPG)
Sanitary Inspector, Kalyani Municipality – Mr. Malay Roy – He said
that door to door waste collection started in Kalyani since 2000 and all 28
wards are part of it. However, segregation of waste and availability of land
for dumping and composting pose as major challenges in Kalyani municipality’s
waste management endeavour.
Representatives of Exide Factory, Shyamnagar Plant – Mr. Biswadeep
Majumdar and Mr. Khairul – While sharing their corporate experience of waste processing at the Shyamnagar plant,
the representatives stressed on the importance of ground-level awareness
generation as mandatory prerequisite to effective waste management both in
urban and rural areas. They shared on how they treat the chemical water of the
plant with RO and ensure reusing 40% of the same in the plant. Their plastic
wastes are at present given to registered vendors but they are exploring to
find new ways to reuse the plastic effectively and create local benefit out of
the same.
Teacher in a B.Ed College – She said that waste
management as part of Socially Useful Productive Work (SUPW) has been
incorporated in their curriculum. But she stressed on the importance of such a
course in the school level, so that children from early age can be aware and
get associated to activities pertaining to waste management.
Please refer to this link
to know more about the discussions and resolutions - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUuW3NeLWlg
2. Session
on Opportunity for Entrepreneurship Development by Suman Mukhopadhyay,
Director, Contact Base
The session started with 3 pertinent questions for entrepreneurship
development – What problem are we solving? How many are facing the problem? Is
the solution cost-effective? Answers to these questions are integral to
determine the fate and value of an entrepreneurial venture. Suman Mukhopadhyay
also spoke about the importance of applying technology to solve social problems
through entrepreneurship development. He then opened the floor for discussions,
where entrepreneurs working in the segment of waste management shared their
experiences and the challenges they face while running their ventures.
Discussions
Sudip Roy from Bioron Solutions Pvt. Ltd. – The
entrepreneurial venture is committed to create sustainable building materials
out of solid waste. They have come up with a ‘digestion process’, which digests
solid waste and converts it to raw materials for the building industry. While
the venture provides an entrepreneurial model capitalizing on the potential of
waste management, Mr. Roy shared how availability of segregated waste in bulk
remains a problem.-
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgggJlCazCvkGHWlbgmIHUj6nMsDD5X5J7M-D-bmr-TtFESGMZW3UKAO_7Ply79EsiE35-XSzo-jrqLLBI9SCAN5BALY-LiKGXxVzqQ0iaIUdZCWzpSpHjR1bZaQTC1FQ9NUaGLXLAhIPhgn_hvPCUzB91kQi4lwyeZIumza65i9qZ-_oO1A7PwRzOvHMcz/w400-h268/DSC_5277.JPG)
Representative from
Satyam Solutions Pvt. Ltd. – The company makes organic manures out of processed
wet waste. The representative stated facing several challenges – firstly, he
said that awareness on the benefits of organic manure is low. That’s why the
company is still running on subsidy model and needs additional funding to reach
out to its market segment, ie., the farmers. Secondly, plastic segregation is
challenging. Plastics need to get sorted micron-wise, as only plastic waste of
certain microns can be fit for recycling into certain materials and this
sorting poses a challenge, specially in regard where waste segregation
mechanism is already not in place. He concluded by asserting that knowledge on
waste management is an important life skill and must be incorporated into
school curriculums.
Public Relations Officer and President of Nadia
Chamber of Commerce shared their experience of developing small scale business
and asked the support of RISE IISER to facilitate scientific innovations in
small-scale entrepreneurial ventures.
Please refer to
this link to know more about the discussions and resolutions - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9gyAObhoBE
3. Session
on Regenerative Agriculture by Mr. Saumya Sen, Naandi Foundation
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXp_BLEUyf2RaelhdBjNjH6tSxO1ir7CvPM57Kfnz9xeSmoqqCzO0UqT4TlvH_CYKd108b8msSL6HXIqFOnYRGlj01qJvPobWLLww3ym8mfvMhOslE95aiBJ2n1sBI3HTR-_1gkUXittfuOato-5GDfzR1mIMUXTQ5G5EwyGUYrFoEfRiq5AxJh5ltW_N_/w400-h268/DSC_5314.JPG)
Mr. Saumya Sen started the session by citing that current
agricultural practices contribute to 1/3rd of the total carbon
dioxide present in the atmosphere. The session commenced with a role play,
where people who are involved in the businesses concerning organic manures among
the audience were asked to market their products to farmers. The discrepancy in
price and marketing techniques that came out of the different pitches were
highlighted as creating a hindrance of choice abundance to the farmer, whose
decision is clouded instead of getting concretized with the obtained
information. Mr. Sen, while stressing the importance of organic manure,
asserted that soil regeneration with microbes following natural technique is
the backbone of regenerative agriculture. He said that micro-biology has a
crucial role to play in realizing the vision of regenerative agriculture. Soil
regeneration with microbes explores how intelligence is embedded in soil over
time and space and it is by capitalizing on this cyclical world chain, the
extant agricultural landscape can be transformed into a sustainable model.
Discussions
Faculty of Bidhan Chandra Krishi Vidyalaya – Dr. Niharendu Saha – Dr.
Saha started with an approach different from Mr. Sen’s. He stressed on the
importance of external nutrients, which are crucial for soil regeneration. He
identified soil as the major input for production, as the key element
sustaining life on earth. According to him, soil regeneration means putting the
vitalities back to the soil on a continued basis. Dr. Saha identified the
importance of external nutrients and organic compost in soil regeneration. He
advocated in favour of organic compost in retaining soil moisture, thereby
making agricultural activities water effective. According to Dr. Saha, if the
entire process of soil regeneration rests solely on microbes, then it will put
undue pressure on soil nutrients, often leading to soil degeneration, instead
of regeneration.
Please refer to
this link to know more about the discussions and resolutions - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YieY9GOXlQg
4. Concluding
Session – Way Forward
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIIBD8IpG68ulkagGxrOWo3-jTyChLuB_2i37V4MaSz1Db-BzjiCwu_aDPC9DMF8zcuOzQRW44SWUNn0tF8-Ukhp7z5BcJlsk3qsMozP4g80w-u0k1i5K-CKgkkSgTwQf9tXZZ5eqKaUNnLt97SnEnK-UyT8kpL89oZg9qYc2w_xB0VZARUgE054zPlVNp/w400-h268/DSC_5382.jpg)
Mr. Amitava Bhattacharya, Founder Director, Contact Base and Prof.
Ayan Banerjee, Dean of Students’ Affair, IISER and Director of RISE, IISER
presented the way forward session. In this session, the role of
entrepreneurship in sustaining activities of social value was stressed at
length. This session identified entrepreneurship as a way forward to solve the
problems of waste and come up with sustainable solutions. While Contact Base
expressed its commitment with regard to community mobilization, RISE IISER confirmed
their support in leading scientific innovations, created to solve the problem
of waste in a time and cost effective manner. The workshop concluded with the
promise of Dr. Nilimesh Roy Chowdhury, Chairman of Kalyani Municipality, who
said that Kalyani will solve its solid waste problem in the coming 3 years and
requested all the domain experts, local administrators and community
representatives to form a network and come up with contextual mitigating
solutions.
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