Making a big impact in Bihar

Bihar’s first solid waste processing site to convert organic waste into compost was inaugurated recently in Muzaffarpur by Suresh Kumar Sharma, the state’s minister for urban development and housing. CSE’s intervention in the city is now being viewed as a model to be replicated in the entire state. 

The efforts by CSE are all set to make Muzaffarpur the first city in Bihar to have its own bye-laws on solid waste management. CSE and the Muzaffarpur Municipal Corporation’sjoint initiative "SwachhataSwasthyaSamridhi" was launched in December 2016. The programme advocated source segregation through community awareness campaigns, and has been able to achieve 70 percent segregation levels in 20 months of operation in 38 out of 49 wards.

The city currently has three decentralised processing centres. The model integrates ragpickers and waste collectors into the mainstream of waste management and augments their income levels. Organic compost is sold under the trademark “MuzaffarpurJaivikKhad”. 

Muzaffarpur and its processing centres have now become a learning site in Bihar with the urban development department pushing to replicate the model in 42 major local bodies of the state.