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Agra Nagar Nigam (ANN), the municipal corporation of the city of Agra, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with The Society for Technology & Action for Rural Advancement (TARA). The collaboration aims to improve plastic waste management in the city, with support from global non-profit organisation, the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (Alliance).

The Nirmal Agra Project plans to transform how plastic waste is managed in the iconic city. The programme will help to address the issue on several fronts – by augmenting existing plastic waste collection, sorting, and processing infrastructure developing new systems, improving data capture and reporting, and introducing behavioural change programmes. It is a key private-public partnership effort to address plastic waste in India, which experiences one of the highest rates of plastic waste leakage in the world.

In addition to project funding, the Alliance also provided support during the feasibility stage of the programme, which started in 2020. The feasibility study included mapping of existing plastic waste hotspots and the formal and informal plastic waste management infrastructure in the city. Other information gathered included waste quantification and characterization and information to understand the informal waste worker sector in Agra. The findings from the feasibility study will be used to inform and implement plastic waste management infrastructure in the city.

Mr. Nicholas Kolesch, Vice-President of Projects at the Alliance said, “We are excited to be able to work with all the local partners and contribute our effort and expertise to support Agra in its ambition to become a plastic waste-free city.”

“The project is also one of the Alliance’s key undertakings in India to uncover scalable plastic waste management approaches and models targeting local community ownership and operation,” he added.

Speaking about the MoU, Mr. Nikhil Tikaram Funde (IAS), Municipal Commissioner, Agra Nagar Nigam said,“We are extremely happy to join hands with TARA, the Alliance and GoMassive for this pressing issue. This partnership will strengthen our abilities to tackle the challenge of mismanaged plastic waste, which is a big hindrance in our endeavours to make the city of Taj clean and green.”

“The reduction of plastic waste leakage in the environment is also critical to ensure resilient, sustainable cities and I am confident that this collaboration will take our work of effective plastic waste management practices to the next level,” he added.

Commenting on the partnership, Mr. Shrashtant Patara, Chief Executive Officer, TARA said, “We are delighted to partner with Agra Nagar Nigam, the Alliance and GoMassive. Plastics are a part of our lives. As households, communities and society at large are making concerted efforts to ensure the judicious use of plastics, we need to be equally committed to ensuring that the waste generated is dealt with in a safe, clean and efficient way.

The Nirmal Agra project aims to do this, in a manner that makes business sense as well. It will redesign the plastic waste collection and processing system, using the strengths and initiative of people, to effect change that is both substantial and sustainable.”

About Agra Nagar Nigam (ANN)

Agra Nagar Nigam (ANN) is a local government body committed for providing necessary community services like health care, sanitation, education, housing, roads, transport etc for the people of Agra.

ANN is well known for managing the city by using private sector participation as well as the introduction of innovative mechanism in management to serve people efficiently.

About the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (Alliance)

The Alliance to End Plastic Waste (Alliance) is a global non-profit organisation with the mission to end plastic waste in the environment. The Alliance develops, deploys, and scales solutions across four strategic areas – infrastructure, innovation, education and engagement, and cleanup. As of Dec 2021, its portfolio comprises over 35 projects across 80 cities worldwide.

Tackling plastic waste is a complex challenge that requires collective action. Since 2019, the Alliance has convened a global network of industry leaders across the plastics value chain, together with government, civil society, entrepreneurs, and communities to work towards advancing a circular economy for plastic waste.

For more information, visit: www.endplasticwaste.org

About The Society for Technology & Action for Rural Advancement (TARA)

The Society for Technology & Action for Rural Advancement (TARA) is a social enterprise set up in the year 1985 at New Delhi, India. It is an “incubation engine” of the Development Alternatives Group which has been providing development solutions in India and elsewhere.

About GoMassive

GoMassive is working to build a vibrant ecosystem to support innovation and scale through partnerships, investments and building ecosystem in the areas of waste management, clean energy, clean city, clean mobility, clean water and agriculture. We are working with vision to deploy capital and support for execution of projects in pollution reduction and climate change.