Mhiesilhouto Savino and Er Kelhousesi Angami.
Atuzo Peseyie
DPRO Kohima
At a time when solid waste management has emerged as one of the greatest environmental challenges facing urban, peri-urban and rural communities in Nagaland, Kuda Village in Dimapur District is setting an inspiring example through a community-led sanitation movement that combines public participation, indigenous innovation and long-term environmental planning.
The Kuda Waste Management Committee, functioning under the Kuda Village Council, has unveiled an ambitious village-wide sanitation project for 2026 aimed at creating a sustainable and self-reliant waste management system. The initiative builds upon more than two decades of experience in waste collection, recycling and community participation.
Formerly known as Nagarjan Village, it was officially renamed Kuda Village following a Ministry of Home Affairs notification dated July 11, 2008. The village comprises three Khels - Kuda A, Kuda B and Kuda C - and had approximately 3,000 house tax-paying households as of March 2026.
A Turning Point
The need for a dedicated waste processing and disposal facility became urgent after the Dimapur Municipal Council's dumping site stopped accepting waste from several neighbouring colonies and village councils, including the East Dimapur Town Committee, in early 2026. The development prompted Kuda Village to accelerate plans for establishing its own scientifically managed waste processing facility.
Following extensive surveys, several locations were examined before Seithekima was selected as the most suitable site due to its remoteness from human settlements, favourable terrain and accessibility. Demonstrating remarkable community commitment, Kuda Village purchased approximately 50 puras of land at Seithekima for Rs. 82 lakhs entirely through community resources.
The proposed site is connected by an existing approach road and is located about 25 kilometres from Kuda Village via the Patkai four-lane highway, making it ideal for long-term waste processing and scientific disposal.
Building on Two Decades of Experience
The present initiative is rooted in the pioneering work undertaken in Kuda C Khel. As early as 1998, concerned citizen Alhoulie Belho initiated to organised waste collection using a handcart. The effort gradually evolved into a structured sanitation programme. In 2003, the Kuda Village Council formally constituted the Waste Management Committee, which began trial waste collection services in Kuda C Khel. Monthly sanitation fees collected from households enabled the committee to operate a pickup vehicle with dedicated sanitation workers, providing door-to-door waste collection services.
The committee soon realised that merely collecting and dumping waste was not a sustainable solution. This understanding led to experiments in waste processing, recycling and resource recovery. Among its early initiatives were vermicomposting of biodegradable waste, collection of kitchen waste for pig farming and conversion of waste plastics into fuel through small-scale pyrolysis. The experience gained in Kuda C Khel later served as a model for sanitation initiatives introduced in Kohima Municipal Council wards during 2009-10 under the Chief Minister's Corpus Fund.
Indigenous Innovation in Waste Processing
One of the most remarkable aspects of the Kuda model is its emphasis on local innovation.
In late 2020, two local innovators - Er. Kelhousesi Angami and Mhiesilhouto Savino - volunteered to design and fabricate indigenous waste-processing equipment using locally available materials, with financial support from the Kuda Village Council. Guided by the principles of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle (3R), the Kuda Village Waste Processing Facility today operates several locally developed machines that significantly reduce the amount of waste requiring final disposal.
The facility currently handles nearly one truckload of waste every day, processing approximately 2950 Kgs of waste daily.
The indigenously developed equipment includes a segregator for separating mixed waste; a manual baler for compressing plastic waste into transportable bundles; a mini pyrolysis unit that converts waste plastics into combustible oil; a glass crusher producing glass sand for manufacturing construction blocks; a thermocol shredder that converts discarded thermocol into material for lightweight building blocks; and a plastic bottle cutter that transforms discarded bottles into durable broom fibres.
These innovations have significantly improved waste recovery while reducing the volume of waste requiring final disposal.
Vision for the Future
Speaking on the evolution of Kuda Village's waste management initiative, waste management expert Er. Kelhousesi Angami recalled that the community had initially purchased a 90 ft by 100 ft plot at Master Colony in Dimapur to serve as a waste disposal site. Over time, however, the site became overwhelmed with accumulated legacy waste, the removal of which cost several lakhs of rupees. Beyond the financial burden, the unmanaged waste also posed environmental and public health concerns for families living in the surrounding area.
"That experience taught us an important lesson-not to simply dump waste but to lay the groundwork for long-term planning through recycling and proper disposal," he said.
Angami said the committee subsequently conceptualize the Waste Processing Facility at Seithekima, located about three kilometres away from human settlements, with a vision of developing a sustainable waste management system. Plans are also underway to develop the site as an Integrated Resource Recovery, Agro Forestry and Eco Learning Park.
He noted that students and educational institutions frequently request visits to the facility for practical learning, but the present site at Kuda lacks adequate infrastructure to accommodate such programmes.
"The new site will take that into account. We want it to become a place where people, especially students, can learn through hands-on experience," he said.
Expressing optimism about the project, Angami said, "We should give our best to make this project a success and make Seithekima Village proud to host such a facility. We hope villages across Nagaland will be inspired by this project."
While acknowledging the role of the government, he stressed that public participation remains the cornerstone of successful waste management. "The government may help, but ultimately the success of such a project depends on the residents of the village," he remarked.
Advocating a more sustainable approach to waste management, Angami said greater emphasis should be placed on recycling rather than merely banning plastics. Referring to the principle of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), he stated that manufacturers should be made responsible for taking back and managing the waste generated from their own products.
He also pointed out that although government agencies distribute dustbins, they often become full within a few days without an effective system for collection and disposal.
"Ultimately, it is the people who will pay the price, so people must develop the responsibility to tackle the waste problem," he said, adding that banning the burning of waste under the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2026 would have little meaning without practical alternatives for waste disposal.
Stressing the need for coordinated efforts, Angami said convergence among all stakeholder departments is essential for effective waste management. Citing the example of Black Soldier Fly experiment, he explained that kitchen waste (wet waste) can be converted into protein-rich feed for fish and poultry through the BSF, demonstrating the potential of resource recovery.
"Even if entrepreneurs are willing to invest in waste recycling, they cannot succeed unless people provide the raw material through proper segregation. The government can handhold the sector by supporting the procurement of recycled products," he added.
The newly acquired Seithekima site is envisioned as much more than a dumping ground. Future development plans include scientific waste segregation units, improved internal road connectivity, plantation of bamboo, fruit and commercial tree species, and the development of agro-horti-forestry demonstration plots. The village also plans to involve youth by allocating cultivation plots where sustainable farming practices can be demonstrated, promoting environmental awareness and the dignity of labour.
The committee is also planning the phased procurement of additional tipper trucks and smaller collection vehicles to strengthen village-wide door-to-door waste collection services.
Sustainable Financing
To ensure long-term sustainability, the Village Council has proposed a structured sanitation financing model.
A one-time contribution towards the acquisition and development of the waste processing site has been proposed from households, institutions and commercial establishments, followed by regular monthly sanitation fees to support waste collection, transportation, vehicle maintenance and payment of sanitation workers.
Digital payment facilities, QR code-enabled transactions, separate receipt systems and weekly monitoring mechanisms have also been proposed to enhance transparency and accountability. The committee believes the model will generate sufficient resources not only to sustain operations but also to gradually expand waste management infrastructure.
The initiative is also in line with the Supreme Court's emphasis on effective implementation of the Solid Waste Management Rules and is expected to benefit from funding opportunities under the Sixteenth Finance Commission for rural and urban local bodies.
A Model for Community Partnership
Chairman of the Kuda Village Council (Waste Management Committee), Ajabu Meru, informed that while all the proposed waste management machinery may not be installed immediately, the committee plans to operationalise the basic facilities within the next couple of months.
"All the machinery may not be set up at once, but the basic requirements are expected to be put in place within the next couple of months and made operational. We will gradually scale up the recycling facilities with the support of Er. Kelhousesi Angami and Mhiesilhouto Savino, who are the brains behind this initiative," Meru said.
He added that the committee is currently focused on completing the final approach road within the site and securing electricity connectivity to enable the facility to commence operations at the earliest.
The Kuda Village Sanitation Project demonstrates how community participation, local leadership and indigenous innovation can together create practical solutions to environmental challenges. By combining scientific waste management with strong community ownership and local innovation, the village has transformed what began as a local sanitation initiative into a promising model of sustainable development.
As the proposed Integrated Resource Recovery, Agro Forestry and Eco Learning Park take shape at the Seithekima site, Kuda Village is demonstrating that sustainable waste management is not merely a government responsibility but a collective community endeavour. With sustained public participation, institutional support and strategic partnerships, the initiative has the potential to become one of Nagaland's most replicable models for village-led waste management.
