650 selfies sent for corpn’s ‘Uram Seyya Virumbu’ programme

Coimbatore: The city corporation has received over 650 selfies, mostly from school students, ever since the awareness programme, ‘Uram Seyya Virumbu’, was launched on November 14.
The programme was launched under the ‘Swacch Bharat Mission’ to promote segregation of domestic wastes at source and home-made compost.

A corporation official said only 50 to 60 selfies were sent by the public, the rest were sent by school students. The corporation is in the process of finalizing the winners and the results are expected to be out by next week. A gold coin would be given to two winners and participation certificates would be given to all those who had sent their selfies.

“At present, we are in the process of verifying the selfie senders based on four aspects – experience they have in making compost, since when they are turning their wastes into compost, uniqueness and way of approach, and usage of compost. We have completed over 60% of verification process,” the official said.

With an aim to reach the public through school students, the corporation has conducted awareness programmes in 210 schools – corporation, government and private – across the district and attained its target of reaching one lakh students within the first fortnight, said the official. Every student participating in the competition was asked to bring segregated non-biodegradable wastes to their schools and turn biodegradable wastes into manure at their home. Around 2.5 tonnes of dry waste was collected from 12 sschools, the official added.

With an assurance from their parents to make compost at their home, over 26,000 students had submitted their registration form which was issued during the awareness programme in their schools, the official said.

Meanwhile, the corporation is also spreading awareness through sanitary workers in all the 100 wards. The official said they have aimed to make 2,500 people do composting in their houses and have already achieved 50% of the target. Sanitary workers would identify the residents who have space to make composting in their ward and educate them about it, he added.

To make the public segregate their wastes into biodegradable and non-biodegradable wastes and to make them convert the biodegradable waste into compost at their house itself, the programme was launched as the first step, said Latha Sundaram, managing trustee of Aram Foundation Charitable Trust, who conducted awareness programme in schools.