Ranchi Municipal Corporation has launched a biodegradable carry-bag manufacturing unit at Naga Baba Vegetable Market and commissioned a 50 kVA hybrid solar panel system at its headquarters, combining plastic-waste reduction with cleaner municipal operations.
Mayor Roshni Khalkho inaugurated the eco-bag facility on Friday as part of the civic body’s initiatives on Swachh Bharat Diwas. The unit is the first production facility established by a civic body in Jharkhand to manufacture biodegradable bags, according to officials cited in the report.
The facility will be operated by women associated with the Area Level Federation. The women’s group will manage production, operations and marketing, giving the project both a waste-management function and an income-generation component. The municipal corporation said the unit is intended to discourage the sale, purchase and use of banned plastic bags while supporting local entrepreneurial skills.
The bags will be manufactured using polybutylene adipate terephthalate, or PBAT, and filler materials in a 7:3 ratio. The unit has an estimated production capacity of about 40 kg an hour. RMC officials put the production cost at Rs 140 per kg and the projected selling price at Rs 160 per kg, creating an expected surplus of Rs 20 per kg.
At full hourly output, the unit could record sales of about Rs 6,400 and a surplus of Rs 800, based on the figures provided by the civic body. RMC may consider setting up similar facilities in other city markets depending on the performance of the Naga Baba unit.
The civic body also strengthened its waste-collection fleet by flagging off 10 tractor-trolley units procured through Union Bank’s corporate social responsibility fund. Khalkho and deputy mayor Neeraj Kumar launched the vehicles, which are intended to support waste collection and transportation, particularly during the upcoming festive season.
“The 10 new tractors will enable more effective waste collection and transportation, particularly in view of the upcoming festive season,” Khalkho said.
At RMC headquarters, a 50 kVA hybrid solar panel system installed by the Jharkhand Renewable Energy Development Agency was commissioned. The system currently supplies power to the basement, ground floor, first floor and second floor of the headquarters, with scope for expansion to additional floors.
The solar installation is expected to reduce the corporation’s electricity bills and dependence on grid power. Together with the eco-bag unit and additional waste vehicles, the measures link three operational areas of municipal administration: reducing plastic waste at source, improving the movement of collected waste and lowering energy use in civic offices.
The next expansion of the eco-bag programme will depend on the unit’s performance, while the solar system may be extended to other floors of the municipal headquarters.
