(I) Introduction
The slum dwellers of Gyaspur, who work for the garbage collection contractors of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, sell off spray cans collected in garbage to earn extra money. They break off the plastic knobs of spray cans before selling the metal to kabadiwala. The process is sometimes done children using stones and that possibly could cause injuries to them. Also, the gases coming out of the cans could be hazardous. The team visited Pirana village and Gyaspur slum to understand the lifestyle of villagers and slum dwellers staying a few kilometres apart. Design process of a device for breaking spray cans more efficiently and easily is reported here.
Visit to Pirana Village
Interactions:
Sarpanch, Ajay Bhai: He gave general information about the village. The village has Hindu and Muslim communities. Some part of villagers are tribal people. There are around 700 houses with around 2500 population. The village has one primary, one private (trust Gurukul), and one high school. Both, Gujarati and English medium students study in the Gurukul. There are 3 functional Aganwadi. The main profession of the villagers is agriculture. Most of the farmers of the village grow wheat, rice, vegetables, etc. Underground water is the main source of water for village. There is a bore well which pumps out underground water to supply to village through water distribution system. Primary health care sub centre of the village is one medical service point for the villagers.