Mira-Bhayandar: MBMC's unique intiative to turn agri-waste into eco-friendly bricks for cremations

In a first of its kind initiative in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) has launched a project to replace wooden logs for cremations with eco-friendly briquettes (blocks/ bricks) made out of horticulture and tree waste.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝘂𝗽 𝗶𝗻 𝗚𝗵𝗼𝗱𝗯𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗲, 𝗞𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗿𝗮

The project has been set up near the bus depot in the Ghodbunder village area of Kashimira. Besides traditional wood, it offers an alternative to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and electrically operated pyres.

Horticulture waste like branches and axed dead and dangerous trees are collected by the MBMC’s tree authority during periodical trimming and pruning drives in gardens and roadsides.

𝗘𝗰𝗼-𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗣𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆

“The process involves proper segregation of waste, which is later crushed to powder and compressed under high pressure to churn out eco-friendly cylindrical bricks.” said city engineer Deepak Khambit. The cost of the project being commissioned by a Pune-based company is pegged at around Rs1 crore and has the capacity to churn nearly five tonnes of waste into bricks per day.

𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

For traditionally cremating a body, nearly 300-350 kg of wood is required for an open pyre. The compressed and uniformly sized eco-friendly bricks are expected to reduce consumption by more than 35%. The civic administration has also planned to install more LPG and piped natural gas (PNG) powered pyres fitted with smoke-nuisance abatement systems to reduce emission of toxic gases.

At present, the twin city has 14 crematoriums run and maintained by the civic administration.