``Sulabh International has been looking after the cleanliness at the trade fair for the last four years,'' says B.S. Arya, deputy manager, ITPO, also caretaker at the fair grounds. ``We have 40 ITPO supervisors who are overseeing the entire clean-up operation.'' ITPO's own safai karamcharis are deputed to maintain cleanliness in the offices and parking area.

Sulabh's responsibilities include cleaning (which includes the 90-odd toilets at Pragati Maidan), collection, sorting and disposal of the ever-increasing garbage.

``This year we are collecting around 30 trucks of garbage each day, which is almost double of what we were collecting last year,'' says Ajay Kumar, chairman, Sulabh International. ``There are many more vending machines selling Pepsi, Coke and Nescafe, so there are more paper cups and glasses and garbage. And although refuse bins have been placed all over the fair grounds, visitors are not always putting them to good use.'' Arya attributes the increased garbage to the newly-opened Food Plaza.

``With around one lakh visitors each day, the Food Plaza is the main attraction of the fair and alone generates around one-third of the waste at Pragati Maidan.'' And the figures swell to over four lakh visitors over the weekend and on holidays, meaning more garbage. ``Over the weekend we pick up nearly 50 to 55 trucks of garbage,'' says Kumar. And with each truck accommodating 10 tonnes of refuse, around 400 tonnes of garbage is generated every day.

There are other problems as well, stemming mainly from the city's poor civic sense. ``Many people eat at stalls attached to state pavilions and throw leftovers and empty plates into the next pavilion,'' says D.K. Jain, manager, PR, ITPO. ``Then a situation similar to an inter-state dispute erupts and we have to sometimes intervene to pacify the feuding `states'.''

Sulabh's responsibility doesn't end with collecting garbage and keeping the roads free of litter. The collected garbage is segregated into its bio-degradable and non-degradable components and dumped at a site in Ghazipur. ``We have an arrangement with ragpickers who come and pick up all the non-degradable waste,'' says Kumar.

In fact, Sulabh has done a commendable job. ``We are more than satisfied with what Sulabh has been doing,'' says Arya. The karamcharis themselves go about their task with admirable zeal, picking up every empty Coke glass and paper plate, half-eaten food and pamphlets that are strewn about.

Has Sulabh's job become any easier? ``This year there seems to be some change in people's attitudes. Many people are actually making the effort to look for bins to throw empty cups and refuse,'' says Kumar. ``Maybe our efforts are sending the right signal for the next millennium, a message to keep Delhi clean.''