Proper waste management is important for health and the environment. Through a broad-based project, Usthi has been working to improve waste management in the coastal village of Penthakta. Nearby is Penthakta School, which Usthi established in 1992 together with a local partner for the children of the Penthakta settlement.

The project was developed together with Eawag (the aquatic research institute of ETH Zurich), Usthi’s local partner organisation and an Indian waste management expert. Following a comprehensive community survey, the project entered a pilot phase in 2024. This addressed the issue on a technical level, for example through a new waste separation system. At the same time, workshops were held for teachers and schoolchildren to raise awareness of the risks of uncontrolled waste. In 2026, the newly established waste management system was handed over to the city of Puri.

You can find out what the project achieved and what happens next here.

Usthi warmly thanks all the project partners involved for the successful collaboration.