Indore: Ujjain administration has installed a 600 kg capacity organic waste converter in the Mahakal temple campus to convert the offered flowers into usable organic manure. The Mahakal temple in Ujjain generated over 5,000 kg of organic manure during the Simhastha month from the flowers offered to the Lord Shiva.
The organic waste converter generates on an average 150-180 kg of organic manure every day from 600 kg of flowers.
Sudesh Kalway, director, Ultra Waste Management Services that has installed the waste converter in the temple premises said, “We are using 600 kg of flowers every day from the Mahakal temple and 30 per cent of this is converted into high quality manure that can be used for gardening.”
Around 2,000-2,500 kg of flowers is offered in the Mahakal temple daily during Simhastha out of which around 600 kg are used for manure conversion, said Kalway.
The waste collected from the temple is segregated as organic and non-organic waste. All organic waste like flowers, leaves and coconut shells used for puja is fed in the machine along with additive bio culture, sanitade and absorbent saw dust. After storing for 10 days the waste is decomposed into organic manure which can be used for gardening, plantation and vegetable farming.
The organic manure obtained so far has been stored and the sale will commence in coming weeks, most likely at a rate of Rs 15 per kg.
Kalway said, “We will be starting the full-fledged sale of the manure soon as the demand is expected to grow with the monsoon season when farmers will start the sowing operations.”
According to experts, most of the offered flowers were wasted due to the small capacity of the converter but the government should continue the use of the converter to efficiently utilize the used flowers into manure.
Source: Mahakal temple in Ujjain goes the organic way – Times of India