Beyond symbolic cleanliness drive

Ten years of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) is a significant period to reflect on the outcomes and challenges of the world’s largest behaviour change programme. The declaration of six lakh villages and 4,500 cities and towns as open defecation-free in 2019 after construction of over ten crore toilets marked the spectacular achievement under the flagship mission. The primary focus of the mission was to construct individual household toilets, community toilets, and solid and liquid waste management. Pathetic solid and liquid waste management in Guwahati and other urban areas of Assam is a grim reminder about the priorities under the SBM (Urban) 2.0 launched in 2021, the goal of which is to make cities garbage-free and achieve 100% scientific management of solid wastes. It also reflected the hard reality of a large section of residents of Guwahati and other urban areas of the state not being responsive to initiatives to change their behaviour and make cleanliness an integral part of daily life. Segregation of garbage at source, scientific processing of wastes, and cleanliness of drains and water bodies are key indicators of the mission success. Official data reveals that the gap in solid waste processing in Guwahati is expected to be reduced to 235 tonnes per day (TPD) as a solid waste processing plant of 150 TPD capacity has started operating in two shifts at Belortol. The Guwahati Municipal Corporation authorities hope to make three refuse transfer stations-cum- material recovery facilities at three locations in the city with 235 TPD capacity operational next month. These progresses have raised hopes for improvement in waste management in the capital city. The potential increase in volume of waste generation due to rising population in the city cannot be overlooked, and the challenge will be to keep increasing the waste processing capacity to prevent garbage piling up on dumpsites. Waste segregation at source is crucial for the sustainability of the processing system, but the city has a long way to go with neither the residents nor the GMC waste pickers showing any sincerity to practice it. The abysmal failure of the authorities to enforce the prohibition of single-use plastic carry bags has been compounded by wilful violations of the prohibition by traders and customers. Irresponsible behaviour of dumping plastic carry bags and water bottles, clogging the drains, and remaining unchanged in the city over the past ten years of SBM implementation in the state is quite depressing. Lessons must be learnt by reflecting on these gaps and ensuring that the cleanliness drive does not remain hostage to symbolism in the single-day annual events of SBM. Enforcement of rules is often necessary to make people realise the importance of behavioural change if it does not happen spontaneously. Making helmet wearing a part of safety behaviour, except a small section who consider it to be only to avoid paying a fine for traffic rule violation, demonstrated the importance of enforcement to effectively carry out behavioural change campaigns. Best practices of waste management in cities like the cleanest city of the country—Indore—in which residents and authorities play their part sincerely need to be widely disseminated in Guwahati and other urban areas of the state to help both the key stakeholders realise where they stand after 10 years of SBM. If half of Guwahati’s population takes the resolution of carrying a reusable shopping bag every time they go for marketing, the demand for single-use plastic carry bags will be halved. It will then make it easier for the GMC authorities to seize and impose fines on violators of the prohibition. When demand for plastic carry bags reduces, dumping of it into drains and water bodies will also significantly decline. The yawning gap in waste management in Guwahati is also a wake-up call for NGOs taking part in government-funded cleanliness programmes and initiatives as part of SBM to review their performance and identify their shortcomings in making the awareness drive reach its goal even after ten years. The campaign for a garbage-free city needs to be more innovative to influence the behaviour of every section of society. The campaign needs to focus on key stakeholders like shopkeepers who will remind the buyers not to throw the water or beverage bottle into drains or water bodies and carry it home for proper disposal when the waste picker comes to pick up garbage in their localities. Encouraging people to carry their own water bottles to public events can significantly reduce the demand for plastic bottles. People often perceive such initiatives of behavioural change to be of not much importance and tend to ignore those that can make a significant difference if pushed through sustained campaigns run in educational institutions, offices, and markets. Invitations to public events can highlight the appeal to guests and other participants to bring their own water bottles. It is high time cleanliness initiatives move beyond symbolism.