SEWA trash depot a treasure trove for city’s scrap dealers

SEWA coordinators Manali Shah and Yamini Vyas guide them and protect them as scrap dealers in the area often threaten them of dire consequences if they sell their scrap here.

The outlet was started in September after a gap of nearly 18 years to sell waste paper,plastic,metal and glass after segregating them from the sackfuls brought in from across the city.

A cooperative was formed under SEWA and it has tied up with a single wholesale party for wholesale deals. Shah said: “The major benefit is protection against cheating and exploitation. Otherwise scrap collectors face a loss of nearly 40 per loss in a day’s earning.”

Babiben’s husband in jobless and her children do small-time jobs. She said: “There is an electronic scale for accurate weighing,and a reliable person from among us keeps track of the accounts,so we do not have to worry about cheating.”Yamini Vyas,who coordinates with the ragpickers in SEWA,said: “We have also got them trained at the Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology to help them make out good plastic waste from the bad ones from the recycling point of view. This helps them pick up the right stuff.” Till date,around 120 ragpickers have been trained in this. Shah said: “We plan to open up a few more outlets in the other parts of the city,as the cooperative initiative is gaining popularity. We call this waste a treasure because this is what sustains them in their daily grind.”