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The Indian ragpickers are barely in their teens and most of them are in the range of 5-10 years of age. 

The seventy acre Ghazipur landfill garbage site is located in the east of Delhi, a city whose population is approximately 21 million. The city generates an immense rate of 8,000 tons of garbage per day. The trash has no distinction between organic and inorganic materials -- everything from leftover food, perishable items to electronics are dumped into these areas that cause alarming toxic emissions. Recycling and rag-picking of municipal solid waste is a common and prevalent activity in Delhi and even has its own network of informal rag-pickers and scrap-dealers. These garbage sites have items ranging from paper, cardboard, plastics, metals, glass, rubber, leather to fabric, clothing etc and rotten food items. The estimated number of rag-pickers in Delhi is believed to be in the range of 80,000 to 100,000. Approximately 1200-1500 tonnes of garbage per day are removed from the municipal collection by these ragpickers. However, these ragpickers work in deplorable conditions and often are exposed to extreme occupational health hazards. These ragpickers are also barely in their teens and most of them are in the range of 5-10 years of age. 

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© Copyright | Burhaan Kinu | 2023 | All Rights Reserved

© Copyright | Burhaan Kinu | 2024 | All Rights Reserved
 

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