COVID-19 impacts on Chemicals and Wastes in India

Over the course of this project, India witnessed a massive surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in the country. The use of chemicals such as sanitizers, disinfectants, hand washes, soaps, etc. has increased during the pandemic to mitigate the effects of the virus. Additionally, during the pandemic, products such as masks, sanitizers, hand gloves, shields, etc. have contributed to increasing household waste, as well as plastic waste. The additional waste has been an added burden on the management of waste generated in the country, and there has not been proper training for the staff or sanitary workers about handling the waste generated during COVID-19.

For this project, NGO Lok Kalyan Seva Kendra (LKSK) worked to create awareness among rural communities about proper waste management, and shared information about ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Amongst other activities, LKSK did this by creating and displaying banners about COVID and waste, distributing leaflets about the same in local languages, creating a song with local artists about COVID safety, and communicating via texts and phone calls to families about waste management.

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This project relates to Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 6.

Special thanks to IPEN's South Asia Regional Coordinator Tripti Arora and South Asia Regional Hub Toxics Link, especially staff member Alka Dubey, for their important contributions to the development and finalization of the project.