Aviral – Reducing Plastic Waste in the Ganga is a project powered by the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (Alliance) and implemented by the German development agency GIZ with the objective to reduce plastic waste entering the environment. The pilot project, in cooperation with Saahas NGO and Waste Warriors Society, is supporting the Municipal Corporations of Haridwar and Rishikesh in developing approaches for sustainable and replicable plastic waste management solutions.
Together, with local stakeholders, the pilot project is demonstrating best practice examples in Haridwar and Rishikesh through awareness generation and capacity enhancement activities at the ground level.The initiative is building on the existing flagship programs of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (Namami Gange) and the Clean India Mission (Swachh Bharat Mission).
Aviral – the Hindi term for “continuous” – underlines the vision to establish a circular system for plastics and to regenerate natural habitats. The ever-increasing plastic waste and pollution threaten human health, wildlife, and biodiversity across India. Particularly urban cities face the challenge of managing growing plastic waste generation and mounting landfills, often without harnessing the values and resources to their full extent.
By supporting cities such as Haridwar and Rishikesh in strengthening sustainable plastic waste management practices, Aviral seeks to promote a new approach to plastics and to prevent riverine and marine litter – thus ensuring the the continuous flow of the river Ganga.
Aviral works hand in hand with local stakeholders from Haridwar and Rishikesh Municipal Corporation while being embedded in the broader plastic waste management ecosystem, collaborating with the private sector, informal waste workers, schools, and local NGOs to pilot an approach based on four key axes:
Raising awareness among local residents and visitors to change behaviors on plastic waste and source segregation through online and offline engagement
Improving knowledge and resources of municipalities towards a strategic and sustainable approach to plastic waste management
Strengthening the plastic waste value chain and management system, aiming at enhancing technical resources with a specific focus on waste segregation
Piloting and fostering innovative plastic waste management and recycling solutions by local enterprises and startups
The ultimate objective is to reduce plastic waste entering the environment. By supporting Haridwar and Rishikesh in strengthening sustainable plastic waste management practices, we pilot new approaches towards a circularity system for plastic waste. Our teams are supporting in: