Ravidas' residents know that India has a trash problem and are trying to do their part to fix it.

While one of Jahan's four sons gives a goat a soapy bath nearby, a man walks past carrying a basket of plastic and other household waste. The plastic will be removed from the community, but residents have few good options for where it ends up.

Most likely, what is collected in Ravidas will end up on one of the huge landfills around New Delhi, where non-biodegradable materials mix with recyclable plastics -- a mounting symbol of India's trash turmoil.

Trash mountain

But the Ghazipur dump is not a one off -- it is just New Delhi's biggest example.

In the north of the city, the Bhalswa landfill greets drivers entering New Delhi from the north.

At Bhalswa, a steady flow of jeeps zigzag up the trash heap dumping their garbage, as hawks circle overhead. Fires caused by the release of methane gas sporadically break out and can take days to contain, all while men, women and children sift through the rubbish looking for items to sell.

Lokesh, 40, who goes by one name, is part of this economy. In his truck, he collects sacks made from plastic from the Bhalswa landfill and sells it to nearby factories, which turn the material back into other sacks or slippers. He's worked here for the past four years and, while it's more lucrative than his former job as a cement truck driver, he said he wants to quit.

"When they take it to the factories they burn it to melt it down and then the smoke comes out so pollution comes (out)," he said. "I want to stop because of the pollution it causes."

Throughout India, there is an army of informal sector workers, like Lokesh, who make their living from recycling. Priti Mahesh, chief program co-ordinator at Toxics Link, a New Delhi-based NGO working for environmental justice, said their presence is a "challenge and a blessing."

Still, there are few alternatives.

The end of plastic menace

But a year later, experts aren't so sure Modi is going to be able to fulfill his promise.

Furthermore, the government is grappling with a lack of information on this issue.

"Most states have no information on what is happening or where it is happening," said Mahesh.

The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change did not reply to requests for comment.

Meanwhile, Mahesh said there is a "huge change in consumer behavior which is resulting in more single-use plastics," as India's middle class swells and spends its disposable income on online shopping and fast food.

Environmentalists say that rather than just focusing on recycling, governments need to work on reducing the amount of plastic being produced. That will mean getting the plastics industry on side, which will be a difficult task -- India's packaging industry is worth $32 billion, employing one million people nationwide and growing.

Waking up to plastic reality

Public awareness around the issue of plastics, however, does seem to be growing -- perhaps because trash is becoming such a global issue. China produces 50 million tons of plastic waste each year and the United States generated 34.5 million tons of plastic in 2015.

While these are steps in the right direction, environmentalists say that without government standardization in recycling systems and greater industry efforts to reduce plastic consumption and production, change will not come.

"Plastic has gotten into us much more deeply than we realize and accept. There has to be a major breakthrough for us to get rid of this crisis," said Mahesh.

In Ravidas slum, Jahan said she considers the challenge of shifting people's attitudes towards their trash habits her purpose in life.

"There are all kinds of people," she said. "Some will not care at all. 'If it's there, let it be there,' they say."

But Jahan will continue to try to change their mind.