Two-day summit on waste management and climate action held at Perungudi dump yard

South Asia Summit 2024 at Perungudi dump yard focused on waste management, climate action, health, youth empowerment, and gender equality.

The South Asia Summit 2024 focusing on waste management, climate action, health impact, youth empowerment, livelihoods, and gender equality under the theme ‘New Realities, New Opportunities’ was held at the Perungudi dump yard near the Pallikaranai marshland.

The event, organised by Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) and Zigma Global Environ Solutions, one of the private agencies to which the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has outsourced a biomining project, featured over 40 sessions and 90 speakers.

In his keynote speech, M.P. Amith, GCC Regional Deputy Commissioner (South), said land reclamation through biomining would aid flood mitigation, particularly in the nearby Velachery.

During the ‘Climate Pathfinders Workshop,’ Prashant Singh, CEO, Blue Planet Environmental Solutions, showcased examples for land reclamation through biomining. He said so far 96 acres had been reclaimed at the Perungudi dump yard after the processing of 1.73 million cubic metres of waste.

Mr. Singh said plans to set up a new processing unit to handle 10,000 tonnes of legacy waste daily at the Kodungaiyur dump yard were under way. Zigma has processed over 1.7 million tonnes of legacy waste at Perungudi at an estimated cost of ₹1,064.93 per cubic metre, he added.

Speaking to reporters, Aravindan Srinivasan, Executive Director of the Climate Action Platform at AVPN, stressed the need for stricter government policies on waste segregation and management, enabling start-ups to reduce processing costs.

Discussions on healthcare and gender equality were led by Shivani Bhatt from C40 Cities and Tania Banerjee from the Boston Consulting Group. Waste management and urban resilience were addressed by Darshan Parikh from the CEPT Research and Development Foundation.