Mission Zero: Depalpur’s Legacy Waste Transformation
Depalpur, Madhya Pradesh, became the first city under the Swachh Shehar Jodi initiative to achieve Zero Legacy Waste, remediating 1,250 metric tonnes of legacy waste accumulated over five years under SBM-U 2.0.
- It is a scientific legacy-waste remediation and urban waste-management initiative undertaken by Depalpur Nagar Parishad with Indore Municipal Corporation under the Swachh Shehar Jodi initiative of Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 (SBM-U 2.0).
- It follows the Each One Teach One model, where experienced mentor cities transfer waste-management practices to mentee cities.
Key Findings:
- Zero Legacy Waste: Depalpur completely remediated 1,250 metric tonnes of waste accumulated at its dumpsite over five years.
- Four-Bin Segregation: Achieved 100% door-to-door collection with segregation of municipal waste into four categories.
- Resource Recovery: Around 4.5 tonnes of plastic, metal and glass were recovered and supplied to authorised recyclers.
- RDF Processing: Around 50–60 tonnes of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) was sent to the NEPRA plant in Indore and subsequently to cement factories for co-processing.
- Mentor–Mentee Model: Over 500 ragpickers from Indore participated alongside Depalpur’s machinery, demonstrating structured peer learning and inter-city cooperation.
