EVs replace manual waste carts in Guntur

• TOI.in

• Published On Aug 23, 2025 at 12:56 PM IST

The project has created job opportunities for over 200 women through its electric vehicle-based waste collection system in GMC alone.

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For over a decade, Prasana Kumari navigated Guntur’s narrow lanes with a heavy pushcart, collecting household waste under punishing conditions. The city’s uneven terrain made the work physically grueling and financially unrewarding. Diesel-powered vehicles struggled to access older lanes, and reliance on manual pushcarts exposed deep inefficiencies in the system. “Each day was a challenge,” Prasana recalls. “The cart was heavy, and the sun was unforgiving.” That changed with the Guntur Municipal Corporation‘s (GMC) adoption of electric auto-tippers under the Clean Andhra Pradesh (CLAP) initiative, supported by UNIDO’s Sustainable Cities Integrated Approach Pilot (SCIAP). These vehicles replaced pushcarts, streamlining waste collection with a cleaner, more efficient system. Power for the fleet is offset by a 500 kWp floating solar plant on the Sangam-Jagarlamudi reservoir-an innovation that links sanitation reform with renewable energy.For Prasana, the shift from manual collector to electric vehicle operator marked a turning point. She joined a growing cohort of women – Kethmala Prameela, Nelapu Srilakshmi, Nune Danamma, and others -who now drive Guntur’s sanitation transformation.

The project has created job opportunities for over 200 women through its electric vehicle-based waste collection system in GMC alone. While rewriting what it means to be a female sanitation worker in Guntur, their collective journey underscores the transformative potential of inclusive policies and the importance of equipping individuals with the tools to drive change, both literally and figuratively.

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