Desanka found a 750 euros Rolex, golden ring and euros: Serbs throw a lot of stuff into garbage, as if they are all rich!

This "bonus" sometimes helps them to return some debts or to afford something valuable for themselves

The collectors of secondary raw materials can find all sorts of things on landfills in Serbia. Sometimes they find valuable things people throw accidentally. This "bonus" sometimes helps them to return some debts or to afford something valuable for themselves. 

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- We find gold, silver, euros. Last year, somebody threw away 3.200 euros together with medications, chocolate and a bouquet of roses, that was in a jar we all kicked to the side. After a month, my brother opened it and he almost fainted - Desanka Rajkov from Backo Gradiste is one of 30 collectors of secondary materials, who work every day on City Landfill Botra in Becej, except Sunday, Easter, and Christmas.

She was lucky too, she found a golden ring which costs around 7.000 dinars (60 euros), and her husband found a necklace of around 20.000 dinars (167 euros).

- We found a Rolex watch of 750 euros. We bought a car so we could come to the landfill and avoid people who judge us for our job - said Desanka for Alo, who is in her early forties.

Those who find some valuable stuff, use that to pay debts, or to invest in their homes, to afford something for their children.

- My brother used those 3.200 euros to return some debts. He got in debt at the local store because he bought bread, milk, diapers for his children. He has three children and he spent everything on them. He repaid the money and he now lives peacefully - explains Desa with laughter.

Desanka has been doing that job five years ago. She works for 12 hours a day together with her husband, mother, brother, aunt, and uncle, fair and very difficult job.

- My parents used to gather secondary resources. My grandmother did that, in those times. And we come here even today, with a car. We get some fuel from our money. We get up at 5, we drink coffee and we go because we start working at 6 - said Rajkov.

Their job is to pack PET packaging from the piles delivered from a garbage truck, also glass, cardboard, and paper, iron, copper, aluminum, brass, tin. Then they select the resources in the brakes when the trucks are not delivering. It all lasts from 6 am to 18 pm, no matter the weather conditions.

- Everybody has their own room where they put what they gather. No one touches someone else's work. We all respect each other and help each other. Resources are divided by color, weight, purpose. We gather around 600 to 700 kilos of PET every week, 300 kg of paper, 400 kg of tin. Metal is sometimes more, sometimes less. Around 3 to 5 kilos of bras, copper the same - she said.

Daily wages go from 1.200 to 1.500 dinars (10-13 euro), and children also work during the summer holiday.

- They don't go to the sea, they come here to help their parents go through the winter, to have wood, to have something to eat, and to go to school. Four of the children are going to school. We live such a life to have from today to tomorrow - said Desa.

She only finished elementary school and that is why she can't find a better job. She put her children to school so they can have a better and different life.

- Children are sometimes ashamed of us because of the teasing in school. We ended up in court once because they humiliated my child because we are the collectors of secondary materials. The child was depressed. He was crying when he got home - said the woman and she hopes that the children will stop their family tradition.

No matter what, Desa said that the conditions on the landfill are five times better today than before and there is order in the landfill. Everybody wears safety vests for protection. It is known where the bags with secondary resources are places, where you throw out the garbage, and where you throw out the house junk.

(Telegraf.co.uk)