Solid-waste management technique: Swachhta Saarthi Fellowship for GNDU research scholar

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, July 7

The Government of India under its ‘Waste to Wealth’ mission launched the ‘Swachhta Saarthi Fellowships’ (SSF 2021) to recognise students, community workers/self-help groups and municipal and sanitary workers, who have been engaged in tackling the enormous challenge of waste management, scientifically and sustainably.

The ‘Waste to Wealth’ mission is one of the nine national missions of the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC). The fellowship is an initiative to empower young innovators who have been engaged in community work of waste management. and awareness campaigns /waste surveys/studies as ‘Swachhta Saarthis’ and implement actions to reduce waste for a greener planet.

Soubam Indrakumar Singh, who is pursuing PhD from GNDU (Department of Botanical and Environmental Sciences), has been awarded the fellowship.

The monthly fellowship is in recognition of his work on solid-waste management through vermi technology employing earthworms.

His supervisor, Dr Adarsh Pal Vig, Dr Jatinder Kaur and faculty members of GNDU congratulated Soubam.

Dr Vig said, “Managing waste is one issue that has deep implications—those who generate waste are not those who clear it. The Swachhta Saarthi Fellowships will recognize people who go beyond the call of duty in tackling waste and manage it scientifically.”

Divided into three categories

• Category A: Open to school students from Class IX to XII engaged in waste management community work.
• Category B: Open to college students (UG, PG, Research students) engaged in waste management community work.
• Category C: Open to citizens working in the community and through SHGs, municipal or sanitary workers working beyond specifications of their job requirement/descriptions.