For many, the city’s marathon on Sunday was about fitness, endurance and celebration. But for ragpicker Shankar Kumar and his wife Rekha, it became an opportunity to earn nearly a week’s income in a single day.

As thousands of runners and spectators lined the route, the couple quietly worked along the sidelines, collecting discarded plastic bottles, cups and food wrappers left behind during and after the event. By the end of the day, Kumar estimated they had gathered around 60 kg of plastic waste, almost equal to what he usually collects over an entire week.