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RAMA

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How I Built an Open-Source Waste Management Portal for an Indian Municipality

#python #flask #opensource #civictech

The Problem

Waste management in rural India is challenging. Citizens don't know collection schedules, can't report missed pickups, and have no visibility into how their taxes are being used.

The Solution

I built SmartGarbage — an open-source portal that lets citizens:

  • Check collection schedules for their ward
  • Report missed pickups with GPS + photos
  • View live transparency dashboards
  • Earn Green Points for waste segregation

Tech Stack

  • Backend: Python/Flask
  • Database: PostgreSQL (Supabase)
  • Frontend: Bootstrap 5, Leaflet.js, Chart.js
  • Deployment: Docker on Render
  • ML: scikit-learn for overflow prediction

Key Features

1. GPS Photo Verification

When a citizen reports a missed pickup, the app extracts EXIF GPS data from the photo and cross-checks it against the submitted device location. This prevents fake reports from internet photos.

def _photo_gps_from_upload(file_storage):
    """Extract EXIF GPS from uploaded photo."""
    from PIL import Image
    import io
    file_storage.seek(0)
    buf = io.BytesIO(file_storage.read())
    img = Image.open(buf)
    gps = _extract_gps_from_exif(img)
    img.close()
    file_storage.seek(0)
    return gps
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2. Service Worker for Offline Support

The app uses a service worker with 3-tier caching:

  • Static assets: cache-first (never revalidates)
  • HTML pages: stale-while-revalidate (instant repeat visits)
  • CDN resources: stale-while-revalidate (longer TTL) 
// Stale-while-revalidate for HTML pages
async function staleWhileRevalidatePages(req) {
  const cached = await caches.match(req);
  const fetchPromise = fetch(req).then(res => {
    if (res.ok && res.status === 200 && !res.redirected) {
      const cache = caches.open(PAGES_CACHE);
      cache.then(c => c.put(req, res.clone()));
    }
    return res;
  }).catch(() => cached);
  return cached || fetchPromise;
}
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3. Bilingual Interface

Supports English and Telugu using Flask-Babel. Citizens can switch languages with one click.

4. Dark Mode + Font Scaling

Accessibility features that most government sites don't have:

  • Dark mode toggle
  • A- A A+ font scaling
  • High contrast mode
  • WCAG 2.1 AA compliant mega menu

5. ML Predictions

Uses scikit-learn to predict when bins will overflow, enabling proactive dispatch.

Open Source

The code is on GitHub under MIT license. Looking for contributors!

GitHub: SmartGarbage

Live: smartgarbage.eu.org

What I Learned

  1. Flask is powerful — it handled everything from auth to IoT webhooks
  2. Service workers are magic — instant repeat visits, offline support
  3. Accessibility matters — WCAG compliance makes the app usable for everyone
  4. Open source builds trust — the community helps you improve

Next Steps

  • Add more language support (Hindi, Tamil)
  • Integrate with more IoT sensors
  • Build a mobile app wrapper
  • Get government recognition

This is my first open-source project. Feedback welcome!

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