Indore (Madhya Pradesh): A high-level Australian delegation led by Member of Parliament Roy Butler visited Indore on Tuesday to study the city's internationally acclaimed solid waste management system and explore the scope for promoting citizen-led waste segregation initiatives in Australia.
The delegation included senior policy adviser John Clements and Irfan Malik, chief executive officer of inQ Innovation and executive director of the Australia Multilateral Foundation for Impact & Trade.
The team studied Indore's end-to-end waste management system, including source-level segregation, door-to-door collection, scientific transportation, waste processing and resource recovery, to assess how similar community-driven practices could be replicated in Australia.
The delegates observed the door-to-door collection mechanism, household waste segregation, compartment-based collection vehicles and the functioning of sanitation workers.
They also interacted with residents to understand how public awareness and behavioural change have contributed to Indore's cleanliness.
At the Rajshahi garbage transfer station, the delegation reviewed waste transportation, vehicle management and monitoring systems.
At the Integrated Waste Processing Facility, they visited the Bio-CNG plant, Material Recovery Facility (MRF) and bio-mining operations, where municipal officials explained the city's waste processing and environmental initiatives.
The delegation later met Municipal Commissioner Kshitij Singhal and senior officials at the Indore Municipal Corporation headquarters to discuss waste segregation, citizen participation, technology-driven monitoring, waste-to-energy initiatives, recycling and sanitation workers' welfare.
The visitors also called on Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargav, who said Indore's cleanliness success rests on citizen participation, effective waste segregation, dedicated sanitation workers and robust monitoring. He reiterated the city's willingness to share its expertise with cities worldwide.
The Australian delegation described Indore's integrated waste management system as efficient and exemplary, particularly praising its source segregation, Bio-CNG production and scientific waste processing.
They said several aspects of the model could be adapted for waste management initiatives in Australia.
Delhi to Pilot Indore Model
A day after Lieutenant-Governor (L-G) Taranjit Singh Sandhu directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to pilot the "Indore model" of waste management in one municipal zone, a high-level MCD delegation arrived in Indore on Tuesday for a two-day study visit.
The delegation is studying the city's door-to-door waste collection, source-level segregation, processing plants, command and control centre and other innovations that have helped Indore consistently top the Centre's annual cleanliness survey.
The visit follows discussions between Indore Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargav and the Delhi L-G during the Mayor's recent visit to the national capital.
