Bangalore is a rapidly growing city facing a tremendous strain on our solid waste management systems. With the volume of waste generated by households and bulk generators such as commercial establishments, choultries and hotels rapidly increasing, the BBMP and other stakeholders face the daunting task of keeping our city clean and safe. Added to this, is the exploding volume of hazardous waste from hospitals, nursing homes and clinics and electronic waste. Our city has a unique door-to-door waste collection system that aims at eliminating roadside bins.

Our pourakarmikas or garbage collectors face the unenviable task of collecting waste from every doorstep. They are coping with the indiscriminate and insensitive disposal of solid waste by apathetic and indifferent citizens and a system that does not enforce basic solid waste management initiatives like segregation of waste at source. Ill-equipped to handle soiled and hazardous waste, they are often forced to deal with leaking batteries, broken bulbs and bottles, soiled waste like bandages and sanitary pads etc. Many of them are exposed to various health problems, face discrimination, low wages and ill treatment at the hands of private contractors. They are our unsung heroes - working tirelessly to ensure our city is clean and yet, they even become the target of public ire and criticism.

Civic Club children from Children’s Movement for Civic Awareness [CMCA] celebrated the ‘Pourakarmika Day’ on November 22, to recognise their untiring efforts in keeping our city clean and healthy.

The objective of this initiative was to

i.         Sensitise students and adults to the ordeals of the Pourakarmika and the problems of solid waste management in our city.

ii.       Appreciate and acknowledge the contribution of the Pourakarmika in cleanliness and public health.

iii.      At a broader level, the event would serve as a means of enhancing awareness of the need to follow safe and sensitive means of disposing solid waste

The program was flagged off at the BBMP Head office wherein the children from the civic clubs read out poems and thank you notes to the Pourakarmikas and sweets were distributed.

Apart from this the children acknowledged the efforts of cleaners in their respective schools. Children made thank you cards for them and greeted them with flowers and goodies.

A few RWAs also joined with the children in thanking these unsung heroes.

Harminder, a Citizen, responded to the coverage on Pourakarmika Day and wrote the following in her mail:

Hi, i have been reading about your initiative "Pourakarmika day" for the past week in various media and really appreciate your work. The pourakarmikas are the most marginalized section of your society even though they clear everyone's crap every day. Nobody bothers or even thinks twice when we whizz past them in our cars while they clean the streets. We just look away when we see the most foul sight of a truck full of garbage and a man sitting bang on the middle of it, going through the streets, god knows where. It is utmost important that the rights of these section of society be revived and adequately compensated. i have myself been working with an NGO for the past five years but this issue never fails to provoke me. Hope to join hands in this effort with you.

Dheeraj, Mazhar, Sheikh and Shrey, Civic club members of Cambridge School KR puram who represented their civic club for the Pourakarmika day function at the BBMP head office were moved to see tears fill up in the Pourakarmika’s eyes when they greeted them with flowers and thank you cards. They promised that they would always respect the sweepers who do such a thankless job of keeping our city clean.

Most of our volunteers were deeply touched by this whole initiative. All those who earlier never even knew about the pourakarmikas have now resolved to greet them when they see them around.