Waste to wealth: Municipality plans ATMs in place of garbage vats in Darjeeling

Darjeeling: Darjeeling is all set to witness a waste to wealth transformation with the Darjeeling Municipality announcing plans to gradually replace public permanent garbage vats with Automated Teller Machines (ATMs). The vats will be replaced by timely garbage collecting vehicles of the Municipality.

The announcement came on Wednesday morning during an inspection of the Chowrasta horse stable area by Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) Chief Executive Anit Thapa and Darjeeling Municipality Chairman Dipen Thakuri. The visit was aimed at addressing the persistent garbage problem of the area.

During the inspection, the leaders expressed concern over the large amount of waste dumped near the horse stable, an area frequented by both local residents and tourists, at a stone throw distance from the popular public promenade - the Darjeeling Mall.

Appealing to the public, Thapa remarked: “The habit of throwing garbage everywhere needs to change. We are optimistic that this behaviour will gradually change.”

Thakuri welcomed Thapa’s visit and underlined its significance. He informed that the municipality has already removed the garbage vat near the stable and will replace it with an ATM. “Garbage collection vehicles will arrive on schedule—between 7 to 8 a.m. in the morning and 6 to 7 pm in the evening—so that residents and traders can dispose of waste responsibly. Gradually, we will transform the Hill town’s permanent garbage vats into ATMs,” informed Thakuri.

At a point of time there were around 182 public garbage vats in Darjeeling town. However, the Darjeeling Municipality has always been in favour of dismantling the vats and replacing them with a door-to-door garbage collection system. The town produces about 40 metric tonnes of waste daily which can shoot up to 100 metric tonnes during peak tourist season.