COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation has launched a textile waste collection pilot campaign called “Maru Nesavu” (re-weaving) in Ward 33 of the west zone. The campaign, inaugurated by corporation commissioner Katta Ravi Teja on Friday, aims at encouraging residents to hand over their textile waste to sanitation workers.The move is aimed at preventing dumping and burning of textile waste, promoting recycling, protecting natural resources and safeguarding the environment. The collection drive will be carried out every Wednesday.A guidance and training programme for sanitation workers and field workers was also conducted. The commissioner distributed bags to sanitation workers for collecting textile waste and later flagged off the campaign vehicles.The campaign is supported by GIZ India under EU India Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy Initiative. Grant Thornton Bharat LLP is the technical partner for the project.Vikramaditya, an assistant manager at Grant Thornton Bharat LLP, said, “Textile waste assessment is being carried by the Tamil Nadu govt in places like Chennai, Coimbatore, Tirupur, Madurai and Rameswaram. The assessment is for one year. The study will give a detailed analysis on post-consumer textile waste generation and its types and provide solutions for it to be recycled than going into landfill. However, the pilot collection has been initiated only in Coimbatore.”According to Vikramaditya, the textile waste collected separately will be classified into three and processed. He said, “When separately collected, the ones in good condition can be sent to needy or shelter homes. Second category with minor defects can be rectified and sent to thrift stores. The last one mixed with soil, contaminated, faded or completely torn will be classified according to the fabric and sent to nearest recycling cluster in Tirupur.”The commissioner said the initiative would be gradually extended to other zones after its implementation in the west zone.
