Mopungchuket village in Nagaland selected for zero-waste pilot project

Our Correspondent
Mokokchung, Aug. 4 (EMN): In an encouraging development that is expected to lend impetus to the ongoing holistic cleanliness campaign in Mopungchuket village under Mokokchung district, the Integrated Mountain Initiative (IMI) and Zero Waste Himalaya (ZWH) have selected the village for implementation of zero-waste pilot project.

The eight-month-long pilot project will be implemented by The Greensight Project under “Zero Waste Mopungchuket” with resource to be provided by IMI, for which a memorandum on terms of reference was formalised on August 2.

The zero-waste pilot of IMI and ZWH, supported by the European Outdoor Conservation Association (EOCA), is a part of the Himalayan Cleanup, which is an annual flagship programme of IMI conducted across the Himalayan states of India and anchored by ZWH.

Responding to a call for proposal announced by IMI and ZWH earlier this year, The Greensight Project had submitted its project before it was selected as one of the five proposals for the pilots from all over the Indian Himalayan states.

Mopungchuket village is regarded as one of the cleanest villages in Nagaland and has in recent times emerged as the frontrunner in the state’s campaign against plastic pollution.

The Greensight Project, a 5-year scenic enhancement programme of Mopungchuket villages, was launched in 2016 and has been undertaking cleanliness drives in the village in association with the village-level organisations and stakeholders since its inception.

All activities of The Greensight Project circle around its twin core principles of instilling behavioural change towards cleanliness and advocating sustainable practices for preservation of the natural environment among the villagers.

The Greensight Project was launched by the Mopungchuket Village Students’ Organisation (MALT), which is a mandated apex body of the village established in 1932.

The principal focus of Zero-Waste Mopungchuket pilot project will be on sensitisation campaigns and onsite interventions to induce behavioural change among the villagers to adapt zero-waste lifestyle in a sustained manner.

Some of the objectives of the pilot, according to the terms of reference, would include sensitisation through IEC resources, a “make at home” campaign that promotes local unpacked food items, provision of locally sourced dustbins, streamlining of ongoing waste management, strategic partnership with village authority, community engagement, exploring feasible option for providing alternatives to single use plastic items, compulsory household compost pits and audiovisual communication for mass awareness.