Have you ever wondered what happens to your daily waste once it is disposed of at the nearest landfill? These dumping grounds trap waste groundwater with very little oxygen, which results in a slow decomposition process. Samarth Bharat Vyaspeeth (SBV), a non-profit organisation, and the Thane Municipal Corporation launched Project Revitalization in 2017 to send lesser waste to landfills and put it to some good use. The aim was to give the women rag pickers in the area a stable source of income and to collect dry waste from as many households as possible. Till date, they have employed nearly 24 women rag pickers and saved 30 tonnes of waste from ending up at landfills every day.

Women rag pickers at the waste management centre in Kopri, Thane