Mumbai, the ‘City of Dreams,’ has now turned into a metropolis where millions of people cram into local trains and tonnes of garbage is spewed out every day.
The high pollution levels, water scarcity, never-ending traffic, unbearable heat, and rains that can bring the city to a standstill are significant reasons why every Mumbaikar desperately seeks a getaway every once in a while.
Although the family was living in the city’s posh Cuffe Parade area, they were in dire need of a lifestyle that promised clean air, water, and organic food.
So, they decided to build a ‘vacation’ house that was cosy, aesthetic and most importantly eco-friendly, in their one-acre plot in Alibaug, a coastal town 90 kilometres away from the city.
Mishal and Mikhail Pardiwala came up with the idea of using shipping containers to build a house
Mishal and Mikhail, two of the youngest members of the house, took charge of this project.
Their passion for the environment started when they quit their respective jobs in 2016 to launch ‘Treewear,’ a company that makes eco-friendly products. You can read more about it here.
Speaking to The Better India about the reason behind opting for the unconventional route to build a house, Mishal mentions that the idea to build an eco-friendly house in Alibaug was with them since the early days of the company, and finally, in 2018, they started working on it.
On Choosing Shipping Container To Build The House
While the brothers had a lot of options, like construction debris, for example, they zeroed in on shipping containers.
Explaining the advantages, Mishal says, “Compared to other recycled or eco-friendly materials, shipping containers are more durable and tough. Every time a container is recycled, thousands of kilos worth of steel is repurposed. The best part is that when using a container, no other building materials like bricks or cement is required, which reduced the overall carbon footprint.”
Once they had chosen the raw material, they approached an architect who came on board.
The open courtyard serves as a tool to conserve rainwater
Following that, we made several visits to the Panvel yard from where we purchased used six shipping containers, each measuring 40 feet in length and 8 feet in width. They were transported from Panvel to the interiors of Alibuag using Hydro cranes, says Mishal.
Since Alibaug town has red soil and mango wadis (orchards), the house is known as ‘Orange box.’ It has three bedrooms and a high ceiling, 1500 sq feet terrace and a central courtyard.
Besides being a recreational area, the open courtyard also serves as a tool to conserve rainwater.
Our house is on dry land so we will collect the rainwater in a pond situated in the courtyard. Some of the pond’s water will be sent to a nearby borewell to recharge the groundwater tables, says Mishal.
Mishal will spend a couple of months in their sustainable house and will observe how different climatic conditions are affecting the exterior and interior of the house. The idea is to make it a space where people can take a holiday.
They also plan to host weekend workshops like yoga, upcycling waste, plantation, and so on for people.
“The idea is to establish a getaway, while also making people aware about ways to live in harmony with nature,” he concludes.
Waking up early to walk for miles, only to join the never-ending queues for brown-tinted water, companies asking employees to work from home, restaurants shutting down and the government desperately asking people to use water wisely.
This was the scenario in South Africa’s Capetown in September 2018.
Back then, several studies and reports were released, warning cities across the world about a looming water crisis.
Exactly nine months later, India’s southern city, Chennai, has run out of water due to several reasons, the most important being a lack of water management. The capital city is now looking for temporary solutions like ferrying water. On July 7, the city is expected to get 10 million litres of Kaveri water from Jolarpettai in Vellore district.
While the government is taking measures to provide immediate relief, we must bring about a long-term sustainable way to ensure that other regions in the state and country do not face day-zero.
We look at individuals and organisations that are using technologies and simple solutions to save water. What’s more? You can also adopt some of these solutions for long-term relief.
1) Chennai Family Collects Water That Is Purer Than RO Filter
Borewell recharging
V K Raviraja, a 48-year-old insurance consultant, lives on Vasuki Street in the Rajakipakkam area. Five years after he moved into his new 1,000 sq ft home, he installed four types of rainwater harvesting systems.
Using no special techniques, Raviraja relied on gravity and created a slope on the roof that transports water through a hole that goes to a tank. To ensure that the dirty water is purified before it is deposited in the tank, he has placed a cloth that collects dust. The overhead tank can store 7,500 litres of water.
His family, which consumes around 8-10 litres of rainwater every day, has successfully collected 1,500 litres of drinking water so far. Apart from this, they have an underground sump with a capacity of 13,000 litres to catch all rainwater from the terrace for common use.
2) Rain Water Harvesting Helps Bengaluru Man Conserve 60,000 litres of water
Bringing down his water bills to Rs 100 every month, a former technician at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Purushothaman has been saving every drop of rainwater since 2011.
He has installed two RHW systems, which have so far saved some 60,000 litres of water. The conserved water is used to clean utensils, mop the house, and water plants.
3) Quenching Thirst By Creating Artificial Water Glaciers
Also known as the ‘Ice Man of India’, Chewang Norphel has created ten artificial glaciers to meet people’s water demands in Ladakh.
When the 79-year-old retired civil engineer observed that natural glaciers were melting quickly due to global warming, with the resultant wastage of water, he decided to develop a system to conserve the melting ice.
In Phutse village, he made canals to divert water from the main streams to catchment areas located on the outskirts of the village in a shadow area. He constructed ice-retaining walls alongside the area to store the frozen water.
The width of the glacier ranges from 50-200 feet and the depth from 2-7 feet. This water-saving technique has provided water to farmers during water scarcity.
4) Bengaluru Apartment Complex Saves 500 Liters of Water Every Day
Adhinarayana Rao Velpula from Maa Brindavan Society in Bengaluru purchased buckets and left them outside people’s doors to encourage the residents to save water. He convinced every one of the 46 apartments to save wastewater generated from RO water purifiers. Though unfit for drinking, the wastewater can be utilised for other activities like washing cars and gardening.
Instead of using fresh water, the housekeeping staff now reuses the collected wastewater to clean floors and washing cars. On average, the apartment generates 500 liters of RO reject water every day. This is now being reutilised, instead of going down the drain. In so doing, the society is also saving Rs 1,800 per month approximately.
Wastewater purification system at Sanjay Athavale’s home in Pune is recycling 600 litres of water every day. The cycle-like structure transports water from bathroom pipelines into a water tank where it is purified using a cleansing system of sand, stones, and coconut waste. The tank also has Kardal trees inside as the roots of these trees purify water.
When we pedal, the water is supplied to my garden through a drip irrigation system. One minute of cycling can supply 18 litres of water, and a ten-minute workout by each family member is enough for the 50 trees in my garden. The left-over water is stored, and the excess goes in the drain. During monsoon, we don’t have to cycle, but each of us store about 600 litres in the tank with our usage every day, Sanjay told Homegrown.
The irony of one region facing both, severe water scarcity and floods, pushed three MBA graduates Ankit Magan, Neeraj Chauhan, and Priyank Jain to design a solution that uses plastic waste to save water.
Through their bootstrapped venture ‘Retas’ (which translates to ‘flow of rainwater’ in Sanskrit), the trio built a new rainwater harvesting model called Rainmaxxx. Using high-quality Polypropylene (thermoplastic polymer) as raw material, the Gurugram-based firm made geotextile for a rainwater harvesting model.
Since its inception in early 2017, the firm has 54 clients, including big corporations like Siemens, Tata Group and local governments in Delhi and Uttarakhand.
Filling the glass up to the brim for guests or customers is a custom followed in eating joints and families across India, a practice that does not take into account the volume of water wastage.
To change this, Abbas Suleman Kadiwal, the owner of Gloria Restaurant in Byculla, Mumbai, and his employees, have been judiciously using and reusing water. The 49-year-old has directed every waiter to use leftover water from glasses for customers for gardening and cleaning.
The 49-year-old has translated his vision into saving 45,000 litres of water per month. The water usage of the restaurant has come down to 1,500 litres per day from a whopping 8,000 litres.
From asking restaurants in Bengaluru to shift from big glasses to small, requesting waiters to fill glasses half and keeping jugs or bottles on every table instead refilling the glass, teenagers Garvita Gulhati and Pooja Tanawade are promoting efficient water management.
Under their ‘Why Waste’ campaign, the duo has collaborated with more than 30 restaurants in the city to implement these guidelines.
Of course, convincing so many people to make a change in their lifestyle was not a cakewalk, “From where we started, it was challenging to get people to accept what we were doing and get their support and encouragement. We heard a lot of things like ‘Why are you wasting your time with this?”she told The Better India.
For her efforts, Garvita became the only Indian among 60 changemakers to receive the title of ‘Global Changemaker’ in 2018. She is among the 1,000 young leaders between 18-23 years from 42 countries to stand on that platform.
What if there existed a system that sends an alert each time there was a leakage or overflow of water?
Banking on this thought, Yash Khanna, Tanuj Tandon, and Utkarsh Gupta from the Moradabad Institute of Technology, Uttar Pradesh, developed a smart basin that sends an alert through glowing LED lights. If the user is not at home when there is water leakage, the device sends them a text message.
Besides, the wash basin also recycles water by filtering it through a natural filtering process, which consists of different graded rocks, that mimic the filtering process of nature.
10) Using Excess Water Underground To Use When Needed
The plight of farmers during water scarcity and incessant rainfalls inspired Biplab Ketan Paul from Gujarat to come up with a water harvesting technique that uses an injection module to store excess rainwater underground. Farmers can then use the same water for irrigation during summer and winter.
Since the high salinity of soil in the state prevents rainwater from seeping underground, Biplab created a system where excess water passes through a pipe, gets filtered, and accumulates in an underground well. Farmers can use a motor pump to use the stored water for irrigation.
This technology even captures evaporation and prevents loss of water during the monsoon. The underground reservoir can hold 40 million litres of water and can supply for as long as seven months.
Biplab has worked with more than 14,000 farmers and transformed 40,000 acres of barren or disaster-affected farms.
As per a News18 report, 50 per cent of the country is facing a water shortage and 11 of the total 91 major reservoirs across India have dried up. Adding to that, the water levels of three major rivers—Godavari, Krishna and Kaveri—have reduced significantly.
With the number of water-stressed cities increasing in India (like Shimla, Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru) and climate change that affects rainfall patterns every year, it is time India steps up and uses the existing water wisely.
From small measures like filling the glass half to major initiatives that conserve lakhs of litres of water, citizens can make a huge difference in how water is used.
My walk to my office pauses at a fruit vendor every day so that I can buy a plateful of colourful fruits for my colleague. He packs the mixed fruits in a thermocol bowl that he places inside a plastic carry bag. Instead of confronting him about the plastic ban in Bengaluru, I started carrying a steel tiffin.
Like me, most people, to save their time and energy, avoid a discussion on why using polythene bag is harmful to the environment.
But not Odette Katrak, a resident of Green Glen Layout, Bellandur who has been the force behind convincing 20 plus vendors to switch to sustainable options in less than a month.
Seeing the rampant use of plastic where she lives despite a 2016 ban, Odette raised concerns in Beautiful Bengaluru, a citizen-driven group that works towards resolving different issues like water scarcity, tree felling and waste disposal.
Instead of merely hurling abuses at the not-so-efficient enforcement agencies and vendors that still give out plastic bags openly, the members offered multiple solutions to tackle the problem on their WhatsApp group.
Giving an insight into a lengthy discussion that took place in May, Odette, who is the co-founder of the organisation tells The Better India (TBI):
The most common eco-friendly alternative suggested by people was a paper bag. Though biodegradable and less harmful than plastic, at the end of the day it is putting a burden on trees. Besides, the paper manufacturing process consumes water and electricity, thus increasing the overall carbon footprint.
Further explaining the main objective behind the mission, the 55-year-old adds, “If the eco-friendly alternative is generating waste, then it is, at best, an interim step. We are aiming for reusable options instead of disposable ones for long-term and sustainable relief.”
Getting To The Root of Problem
To understand why an illegal item is still being used, Odette and her environmentally conscious friends spoke to both vendors and consumers.
We realised that there is not enough awareness among people regarding the legal and environmental repercussions of using plastic bags. The ones who were aware did not care enough due to several loose ends, ranging from poor implementation to smuggling bags from across borders, says Odette.
They also learnt about what happens during the regular inspections done by health inspectors. Since Bellandur is a huge ward, vendors get enough time to hide the carry bags before the official comes to them. A few days later, life goes back to normal as vendors start giving out the polythene, reveals Odette.
To make people realise their irresponsible consumption and shopping habits, the members decided to go beyond mass awareness drives with a complete plan in place to weed plastic out of their layout.
Switching to Greener Options, One Vendor At A Time
“If I stop giving plastic bags, I will lose customers.”
“The entire country is using plastic, what difference will it make if I do not use it.”
“I am ready to discontinue plastic bags, provided the alternative is affordable and readily available.”
These were the initial and most common reactions cum excuses given by the vendors who were reluctant to join Beautiful Bengaluru’s mission. To tackle these issues, Odette made a comprehensive plan catering to vendors selling different items like coconut, fruits, vegetables, flowers and food.
To begin with, they informed all the vendors about the fines and health implications of using plastic. Next, the team got in touch with a wholesale vendor who was giving cloth bags at a reasonable price.
Not sure if the mission would work out, the vendors purchased a few cloth bags at Rs 3-5 each and charged customers for them. Some of them increased the price of their products by Rs 3, and some gave the cloth bags for free and bore the cost.
Meanwhile, the coconut vendors switched to paper straws charging customers Rs 2 for it. One of the vendors started keeping steel glasses to serve coconut water. Looking at the green ways the vendors were conducting their business, some customers began to carry their own bottles.
The vendor selling flowers replaced plastic bags with reusable trays to store the flowers and started using banana leaves to pack the flowers. Reusable or paper plates replaced the plastic/foil plates at stalls selling momos, chaat and other items.
We told a harmless lie to every vendor by saying the other vendors have already made the change. If you do not change immediately, someone might report it to the health inspector. It seemed to work as within two days the shift was made, says Odette.
Simultaneously, the members of the group made posters mentioning the fines, asking people to bring their bags. They also put up certain signs at the carts.
For instance, at coconut stalls, the sign was ‘No plastic straw. Fine Rs 100 on using it. Rs 2 for paper straw.’
For the first few days, Odette and some residents stood with the vendors and every time a consumer asked for a plastic bag, they informed them about the plastic ban.
While we faced a backlash from certain people, most of them understood and assured us to not ask for plastic bags, she says.
To make the movement a sustainable one, Odette and other members keep a vigil on the vendors and try to resolve their issues whenever needed.
Impact Created
The project was implemented on 1 June this year, and precisely a month later, 25 vendors have discontinued the use of plastic bags as most of the customers are now bringing their own bags.
A significant impact can be seen at one of the coconut vendor’s stalls. Within the first week, four out of 10 customers refused the paper straw, and two weeks later the number increased to seven.
As a business strategy, a vendor selling momos now gives one momo for free if customers get their container and charge Rs 3 for packing the momos in an aluminium foil. All the momo vendors have switched from banned aluminium foil plates and pouches to reusable paper/steel plates.
By giving up plastics, the vendors have also recorded a profit in their business. One coconut vendor earned a profit of Rs 800 by charging customers for the paper straws. Similarly, the vendors charging for cloth bags are making profits too and this model is one reason why vendors were willing to make the shift.
After convincing the vendors, Odette and volunteers at her organisation are now promoting the BYOC (Bring Your Own Container) challenge among the residents of Bellandur.
While we did have a good plan, we had not expected reformation in such a short time, and this only goes to show that making a habit change is possible. As customers, we should appreciate the vendors for making a switch by carrying our bags or containers whenever we shop, signs off Odette.
To know more about the initiative, you can write to Odette at okatrak@gmail.com
What will take it for you to take a small step for the sake of environment?
In an era where infrastructural development in rural and urban areas is moving rapidly, and that too, at the cost of exploiting the natural resources, a simple step of giving up plastic straws or even carry bags seems to be a daunting task for many.
However, there exists a niche of citizens who have read the signs of worsening climatic conditions and the catastrophe bound to happen in the future due to our current consumption habits.
Shriti Pandey from Uttar Pradesh belongs to that environment-conscious group who has not only mended her lifestyle in line with nature but is also making others follow suit.
Born and raised in Gorakhpur, Shriti completed her Civil Engineering from Ghaziabad post which she moved to New York to pursue Masters in Construction Management. She landed a well-paying job in a New York construction company and for a year, lived the American dream with her parents proud of her achievements.
Shriti’s life, that many dream of living, took a turn when she decided to quit.
Since childhood I have been fascinated by buildings and I always imagined constructing affordable houses for people. A few months into the new job, I realised I was not learning or growing professionally. I quit my job and came back to my hometown, she tells The Better India.
After returning to India in 2016, Shriti learnt about the The SBI Youth for India Fellowship that primarily aims to bring a socio-economic change in backward areas by empowering the underprivileged strata of the society.
While her parents were happy about her socially-driven decision, they thought their daughter would ultimately go back to her job in the United States. However, Shriti gave up her H-1B visa to explore opportunities in India.
Shriti Pandey
For a year she lived with some families in Pandhana, a tribal region of Madhya Pradesh where she provided ways to uplift the animal husbandry occupation.
However, being an expert in building designs and construction, Shriti could not help but notice the type of houses the villagers resided in.
The construction material (bricks and concrete) used to make the houses had thermal discomfort. In summer the houses would be boiling and during rains leakage problems would be prominent. That is when it struck me how designs and building materials played an integral role in tackling extreme weather conditions and at the same time could be nature-friendly, says the 27-year-old.
Right before the fellowship ended, she came across a European company ‘Ekopanely’ that builds low energy and affordable houses. Impressed by their technology of using ecological, recyclable and vapour permeable construction panels as building material, she approached them.
The company uses compressed strawboard panels that were used a century ago. I studied their product and concluded that agro-waste can be used to make the boards. This is not only beneficial for the environment but also for the Indian farmers. Most of the farmers are forced to burn agriculture residue that further causes air pollution, says Shriti.
When asked why she prefers constructing the homes in rural areas instead of urban where the profits are higher, Shriti says, “India lives in its villages, and while the cities have grown immensely over the last 20 years, rural areas have not seen that kind of development. For India’s economy to be strong, the rural economy needs to grow. If rural India is poor, India is poor.”
Launching Green Construction Firm
Strawcture Eco team
When Shriti expressed the idea of starting a firm to build eco-friendly houses, her friends and family thought it was a huge mistake.
My parents worried if this concept which is fairly new India would work out. It was challenging to make people understand the objective of the firm. But I took the risk and registered ‘Strawcture Eco’ company in June 2018. Once it was registered, I knew that there was no turning back, says Shriti.
“I was confident about the potential of such houses and its long term environmental and economical benefits. All I needed was patience and time to establish a market in rural areas,” she adds.
Shriti was clear on the funding aspect. She did not want investors in her business and risk giving up her power and ideas for the sake of money. So she did the next best thing. She approached all the women relatives in her family and made them shareholders.
With two lakhs of share capital I started the company and from my grandmother, mother, cousins to aunties, it’s an all-women team, she says.
On Constructing Eco-Friendly Homes
One acre worth of residue can fetch the farmers upto Rs 25,000
A sustainable alternative to concrete walls and ceilings, the fibre panels are made from agricultural waste. The panels are combined with steel, to provide wall and ceiling systems for both permanent and temporary housing.
One acre worth of residue can fetch the farmers upto Rs 25,000 and simultaneously reduce air pollution by preventing stubble burning. Every 10×4 feet panel uses around 100 kilos of straw and in a 100 square feet house, around 15,000 kilos of waste is repurposed.
The straw core of the Strawcture board is encased in three layers of recycled paper. After a Strawcture board is installed into a structure, the surface is penetrated and a final finish is applied that prevents rodents from entering the house.
The straw panels can last for up to 100 years. The micro-pores created on the panel absorb and retain humidity until the temperature conditions change for the better. The Strawcture board then releases the humidity, moistening the air inside the room.
The straw panels can last for up to 100 years
The best, says Shriti, is that local renewable resources can be used as construction materials for the panels, “The steel used in the frame can be replaced by materials like bamboo and wood. We plan to expand our project across India so that we can use bamboo in North East, teakwood in Uttarakhand and so on. This will reduce carbon footprints as transporting concrete materials like cement, sand and water won’t be necessary.”
Shriti’s first project was in her hometown where she constructed a house. She invited several industrial and environmental experts to study the house. Shriti and her team now occupy the house to test if it can survive all climatic conditions.
Among them was a school principal who requested Shriti to build a floor in their school.
We made a 1600 square feet extension and built four classrooms from straw board in a 70-year-old school. This project made us realise that vertical expansion is possible and thus space is not needed to build shelters, says Shriti.
In terms of cost and time taken, it is less than conventional route of making house. She was invited by a company in Chennai to build a pilot house along with other construction companies. Narrating one incident she says:
I remember I had booked my return flight ticket five days from the booking date. I was sure of finishing my work in Chennai. By the time I finished my work, the others were working on sheltering process.
The bootstrapped organisation has also constructed a government community kitchen and canteen in 25,000 square feet area.
The eco-friendly company hopes to build homes all around India so that it can use locally available resources
Shriti and her team of 10 are currently working on building a colony for labourers in Bhuj.
In Bhuj, the labourers working for Suzlon Energy company move every six months. Taking care of their needs the company has asked us to make temporary houses for them that can be dismantled and moved from one area to another. We are preparing two clusters of 1600 square feet and each cluster can house 25 people, she says.
In the next five years, the company will build 15 such community clusters.
The eco-friendly company hopes to build homes all around India so that it can use locally available resources, “The idea is to build and design permanent homes and living spaces that are affordable, sustainable and accessible for all.”
Among the different challenges that the company has faced, the biggest challenge is price from a business point of view, “We have to quote less price so that people opt for an unconventional route. Paying more for a house that does not use natural resources does not make sense for many people.”
Despite all the criticisms, discouragements and financial problems, Shriti did not give up on her vision, thanks to the immense support from her parents and her determination to provide affordable housing options while saving nature.
People say that charity begins at home, but the world outside it as also as important.
Your home is not secluded or separate from the rest of the world, so any positive change should be adopted both at home and outside to reap actual benefits
These were the thoughts running through 32-year-old IAS officer Megh Nidhi Dahal when he implemented a zero plastic policy in his workspace.
An advocate of eco-friendly lifestyle, Megh realised that observing positive habits at home was not enough to make a substantial difference.
Living a life devoid of plastic may look impossible, but it is just a matter of overcoming social conditioning. Replace your plastic toothbrush with a bamboo one, or the plastic straw with a bamboo or steel straw. Here’s how you can take a small step towards a big change.
“Every day we spend so much time outside of our homes. It’s important that we continue the good habits beyond our personal space, in the workplace as well. What is the point of keeping your house clean, if the area outside it is overflowing with filth? Similarly, environment-sensitive habits cannot be followed at home alone; they need to become a part of our personal and public life,” he said while speaking with The Better India.
With the idea of Swachh Bharat in his mind, Megh, the sub-divisional officer (SDO) cum district election officer of North Salmara, Assam, launched a drive for zero plastic use in his government office, almost two years ago and the manifestation of the same was recently revealed during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in his area.
However, conducting such a big event plastic-free was a challenge.
“I have had some experience of Panchayat Elections during 2018 November-December, where I noted several obstacles or bottle-necks. A major negative outcome of such events, I noticed was the humongous use of plastic and the waste it left behind,” he says.
Scared that such an outcome would follow this year, the SDO began to plan a way out.
“This year, we had a total of 484 polling stations, which meant that they contained 4000 to 5000 people that needed to be fed. In such scenarios involving a large group of people, the usual practice is to provide food in plastic plates and bowls and dispose of them after use. This is extremely harmful to the environment,” shares Megh.
The transformation started with the replacing of plastic and thermocol plates with reusable melamine plates. A total of 1,200 plates were rented, and the people were served in batches.
A conscious choice of food to minimise plastic use was also done. The next step was to replace plastic glasses with those made of glass and for the first time using corn starch bowls instead of thermocol ones.
“While leaning the plot of land to make arrangements for the event, we found out a pit full of thermocol bowls and plates that were dumped last year after the event, as we did not have an economical alternative for bowls at the time. This year, corn starch bowls came to the rescue. A quick research online claimed that they are completely biodegradable and so we got it on board,” he adds.
This, however, is not an action in isolation. For the past three years in Assam, he has been promoting a no-plastic environment in the government offices by replacing plastic or paper cups with earthen cups.
“During office meetings or everyday work breaks, everyone is supposed to only use reusable plates and earthen pots for coffee or tea. And we continue this practice even during large events, like the recent Yoga Day celebrations where we were able to conduct a zero plastic event, with glass tumblers and stainless steel jars instead of pet bottles,” he shares.
He elaborates that growing up in Sikkim, which has imposed a ban on plastic use years ago, also helped shape his lack of dependence on it.
“Today, plastic is everywhere and has emerged to be something which is seemingly unavoidable. But that’s a myth. I grew up in Lingmoo, a village in South Sikkim, where concepts like waste management are not surprising or new. Most households don’t even need that because the waste generated is so less and largely reusable or biodegradable. So, a path to zero plastic use is to reduce the waste generation at large,” he adds.
Megh further shuts down the impression that eco-friendly products or life choices are a considerable burden on the pocket.
“If you carefully calculate the cost of buying such long-term use products and compare them with the cost of disposable plastic products, you would come to a very close margin. But, this calculation needs to also factor in the long-term damage done by the use of plastic and the expenditure incurred to rid the environment of it. In that case, you will find the use of plastic indeed is an expensive choice!” informs the IAS officer, who continues to make efforts to change the mindset of the people around.
We appreciate such steps by individuals like Megh who not only set a powerful precedent for the entire country but also reiterate the fact that indeed change can begin from a single point and grow into a phenomenon!
The year was 1983. It was the first time that residents of Herma, a tiny hamlet in Tripura, who considered electricity a distant dream, saw dim bulbs come to life. All with the power of the sun.
Nripen Chakraborty the then CM of Tripura and Dr Manmohan Singh, the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, were witness to this moment.
A first-of-its-kind project in India, it became a trailblazer for solar rural electrification projects to follow, and the man responsible for this, was Kolkata-based scientist, SP Gon Chaudhuri.
Santi Pada Gon Chaudhuri
Singh, who was thoroughly impressed with the young Bengali scientist’s work, referred him to the North Eastern Council as an advisor and he was eventually entrusted with the task of introducing non-conventional energy sources across states of the frontier region.
Known as the Solar Man of Kolkata, the man with a 35-year-old career in renewable energy, was recently honoured with the prestigious Mission Innovation Champion Award in Vancouver, Canada on May 27, 2019.
A follow-up of the Paris Convention, the award was presented to individuals who contributed to the field of solar or clean energy.
Gon Chaudhuri has completed numerous Solar PV projects within India and abroad. He also set up India’s first megawatt-scale-grid-connected solar power plant and the first floating solar power plant.
Apart from electrifying households in Sundarbans with the mini-grid concept, he also designed the first solar housing complex in Kolkata.
The Better India got in touch with him to document his journey.
Who is SP Gon Chaudhuri?
An electrical engineer from Jadavpur University, Santi Pada Gon Chaudhuri completed his specialisation from Edinburgh University and received a Doctorate of Science from the Kolkata University.
In the delta region of Sunderbans, which is home to close to five million, people lived without electricity until the 90s and were mostly dependent on kerosene lamps.
In 1994, Gon Chaudhuri brought electricity to households in the Kamalpur Village in the Sagar islands by introducing solar lighting system through the mini-grid concept. He set up a solar power plant in the village and constructed a local grid to help people get electricity for a limited time.
“This was the first time a village was electrified through the mini-grid concept in Asia,” claims Gon Chaudhuri. “Today lakhs of households depend on solar power in the Sunderbans,” he adds.
The success of the project funded by the Central Government and the State Government of West Bengal paved the way for similar programmes across Rajasthan, Chattisgarh, and Jharkhand.
Many criticised Gon Chaudhuri’s work stating that ‘India was a poor country and solar energy was expensive.’ But the scientist stood his ground and was able to garner support and funding, from the Government of India.
Ever since there has been no looking back.
Here’s a look at some of his innovations:
1) Micro-solar dome
Micro Solar Dome
This is a small device that captures solar energy during the day and operates at night using a solar PV system. The Department of Science and technology supported the invention as a research project. Gon Chaudhuri has patented the technology behind it.
The device, which comes with a cutter and an adhesive, has an upper and lower dome that can be fixed on the tin-sheet roofs of people living in slums and jhuggi jhopdis. It is also equipped with a USB port where you can charge phones.
It can be mounted on any type of roof, namely, GCI sheet, asbestos, clay tiles, stone, and even concrete.
The upper dome consists of solar panels which capture solar energy and retains it in lithium batteries. There is a shutter in the bottom of the lower dome, which can be closed if the light is not required in the daytime. The device is leak-proof and works throughout the day, in addition to four hours after sunset.
“More than 50 crore people do not have enough light even during the day time. Some people in Rajasthan have to walk five km to charge their phones. With the help of the micro-solar dome, they do it at home now. The cost of one such device is Rs 1600, with a subsidy of Rs 720 by the MNRE (Ministry of New and Renewable Energy).”
The GOI commissioned him to put up these micro-solar domes in remote tribal areas. So far, 10,000 micro solar domes are successfully running in more than 11 states.
After Cyclone Fani ravaged the state of Odisha and paralysed the state with power cuts, more than 100 micro solar domes were distributed to several survivors free of cost. Thanks to the invention, they were able to get electricity and charge their phones.
Now, the GOI has decided to cover another 50,000 homes in rural areas across various states, with the micro-solar dome, and Gon Chaudhuri has partnered with IIT-Kharagpur to execute the project.
Lighting up homes
2) Solar Water Purifier
Solar Water Purifier
To cater to the needs of safe and clean potable water in government schools, Gon Chaudhuri invented a solar water purifier.
He claims that the device is the first-of-its-kind, and can treat water containing suspended particles and bacteria through solar-powered UV light while saving 30 units of power in a month.
While a smaller storage purifier that can serve 100 students costs Rs 40,000, a bigger one for 400 students can cost up to Rs 1 lakh, and one catering to 500 students per day costs 1.5 lakh.
“The system requires no external electricity. Even on cloudy days, the storage capacity of these is about 200 litres, which can last for three to four days. Currently, there are five manufacturers in the market for the micro-solar dome and two for the solar purifier,” says Gon Chaudhuri.
“In rural India, more than 45 per cent of women do not use ATMs due to low literacy rates and the non-user friendly nature of the machine. Also, the power in villages in erratic. Thus, a solar-operated ATM could be a solution.”
Keeping in mind the difficulty of remembering the PIN, the solar-powered ATM, christened the ‘Janta ATM’ incorporates the use of biometrics. (If mass produced, this would require permission from the Reserve Bank and need users to register with the banks first.)
A touchpad on the device identifies your finger impression. Now, assuming you are registered, your name and picture will appear. The screen will have photographs of different denominations that you can select. The ATM will dispense the selected amount. A headset attached to it will read out your updated bank account statement.
“We are using the machine in the office. The final prototype has been developed. We are working with the Centre currently. Only when it gets approved and launched formally as a programme, we will float tenders for manufacture to mass-produce this.”
4) Solar Pump
Micro solar pump
Under Swachh Bharat, several toilets have been constructed in villages, but a jarring issue for many is that these toilets have become defunct.
Why? Because there is no running water in the taps.
So, Gon Chaudhuri developed a small micro solar pump which would operate and lift water from the nearest body to a small tank above the toilets, to ensure people get 24×7 running water.
He is working with ONGC’s CSR wing on this project, and together, they have set up this pump in over 100 schools for girls across Tripura, benefitting more than 30,000 students in the process.
5) Solar Power Storage
The latest innovation that he is working on is the storage of solar power. In November 2018, the scientist came up with a prototype of a machine that will store solar power in water for 24 hours.
“Right now, only a small amount of solar power can be stored in batteries. With this machine, solar power can be stored for 24 hours, and the cost is about 1/5 of that in batteries. Also, batteries storing solar power have an average life expectancy of six years, while through this machine, solar power could be stored in water for over 40 years,” he said.
Speaking to the Times of India in 2018, he added that the integrated machine has five parts: namely a solar panel, a micro-solar pump, a micro-hydel equipment, a water tank, and a water reservoir.
Explaining the working, he said, “Once the solar panel produces solar power, it is first stored in the underground reservoir and then pumped into the overhead water tank, where it is stored as potential energy. To generate power, a micro-hydel equipment will be switched on, and that will bring the high-pressured, stored solar-powered water into the main machine, which will turn it into electricity.”
Speaking to TBI, he added how this is a brand new concept across the globe and the first such plant to be set up in Manipur will be completed by the first quarter next year. “If the project is successful, it would be a revolution in solar energy.”
All said, there are still a few challenges, but his team is working with the University of Sheffield and Visva Bharati University in Santiniketan to tackle them.
The retired government servant who teaches in IIT Kharagpur and IISc Shibpur also runs a research centre where 20 young scholars, funded by GOI, are working on innovations in different sectors of solar energy.
At their Guwahati centre, they also conduct training for solar technicians under the programme Surya Mitra, and in Agartala and Tripura, they work on solar solutions for tribals. More than 50 individuals have been working on solar innovations for twenty years dedicatedly, thanks to his vision.
The Future of Renewable Energy
The history of energy in India has witnessed a transition, and yet we continue to remain a nation dependent on coal, the use of which has been banned in most countries. As a country who has signed the Paris convention, we only have until 2030 to reduce our carbon emissions by 33 per cent.
In the light of the Paris Convention, the scientist signs off, “If we want to achieve it, we have to review our energy policy and modify it to reduce our emissions. Renewable energy could play an important role in two sectors—power and transport. We have limited hydro resources, and the use of nuclear power is yet to gain acceptance for various political and social reasons. India will require 7,00,000 MW of electricity in 2030, and we currently generate about 3,00,000 MW. How do we bridge this gap? Solar energy! It has the potential of producing more than 10,00,000 MW of electricity and is undoubtedly our best option.”
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)
If this story inspired you, write to S P Gon Chaudhuri at nbirt2012@gmail.com
I recently came across a comic panel depicting a conversation between two disposable coffee cups, where one informs that other that the last time it was filled with warm coffee was 400 years ago.
The message hit home, just as, I am sure, the writer intended it to be.
If urban lifestyles and irresponsible waste management practices are the reason for the overflowing landfills in cities and towns, it is up to us, the urban citizens, to take a step back and think about what we can do to help.
One way to do that is by putting an end to the surge of single-use plastic, particularly when it comes to food—whether we are ordering in or eating out.
Taking the cause of reducing plastic in their businesses, several restaurants and stores in Bengaluru have started a ‘Bring Your Own Container’ initiative.
A food hub that serves South Indian, North Indian as well as several millet-based dishes, Arogya Ahaara in Bengaluru has quite a loyal customer base.
The takeaway options in the restaurant include food off the counter as also by the kilo, in the case of a big party. What we love about this personally, is the fact that Arogya Ahaara encourages their customers to bring their bowls, containers and bottles for every type of takeaway order.
Imagine the amount of plastic saved if 20-30 customers get reusable containers daily!
Click on this link for their address and contact details.
2. Asha Tiffins, HSR Layout
“Imagine a place where you can go for Sunday breakfast guilt-free. No disposables, almost all 80% bringing their own boxes and bags for parcel. Suddenly you are not odd man (woman) out for carrying boxes for parcel,” writes a Facebook testimonial for Asha Tiffins.
It is true that getting your own containers and cutlery usually means a little more effort—in terms of carrying it and washing. However, this small effort is worth the reduction of chemicals in our food and non-biodegradable garbage in our landfills.
Here is the address of the eco-friendly and much-loved restaurant.
Corner House is an institution in Bengaluru, and hardly a weekend goes by without a dessert from one of their many outlets.
Since the business caters to a menu that is vulnerable to the weather, they had little choice but to use plastic bowls and cups for customers who wanted to take their desserts home.
Recently, though, it began a ‘Bring Your Own Bowl initiative to cut down on their plastic burden.
Speaking to The News Minute, Narayan Rao, who owns the franchise, said, “We want people to become more conscious about how plastic waste can be reduced by being a little more responsible. Most restaurants use disposable utensils, mostly plastic, because there is [a] shortage of water. Though it helps reduce water consumption, it also means more plastic waste is generated. To avoid this, we have started the campaign.”
4. Raghavendra Tiffin, HSR Layout
A small restaurant in the heart of Bengaluru, Raghavendra has already made the eco-friendly choice of switching from rice to millet-based dishes.
But it goes a step further by asking its customers to get their own containers for their orders. Maya, a loyal customer, says, “I used to eat at Raghavendra almost every day when I worked in the area, but since I moved away, I look forward to any opportunity to visit it and go at least once or twice a month.”
Their BYOC programme is unique in that it is one of the few restaurants that has been practicing this for about a decade now, even though it wasn’t the norm when it was introduced.
It also fits in with the broader philosophy of Raghavendra, i.e., millet on the menu, use of biodegradable plates, plantain leaves and steel cutlery.
Organic, zero-waste and taking the cause of an eco-friendly venture head-on, the Buffalo Back store in Jayanagar also empowers small-time farmers in Karnataka.
Keeping with its theme of being sustainable, it has taken up the initiative of asking its customers to BYOC. Their cafe uses produce from their Bannerghatta farms and serves fresh, healthy dishes.
What if you wish to take the dishes home? Well, get your containers, and it will be packed for you!
Lovers of tea and coffee swear by the hot beverages offered by Chai Point. In November last year, the franchise joined the BYOC initiative. While their parcel containers are still eco-friendlier that completely plastic cups, getting your own cups for a takeaway will ensure there are even lesser plastic and cardboard waste in the landfill.
If you are looking to cut down plastic from your life but aren’t convinced how it can be done, let these stores inspire you. Try walking into one of them with your containers—whether for your breakfast or evening tea.
And even if you are visiting a different restaurant, why not carry along a steel or glass container, and request the management to parcel any leftover food in those?
It’s a tiny, but significant step in the fight against plastic pollution.
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)
Like this story? Or have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.
The country is losing its green cover at a rapid rate. But that is nothing new. What matters are the proactive people and the government policies conducive to bring a massive change in the dark scenario.
As activists and NGOs join hands to fight a difficult battle against human development that threatens the environment by stripping the land of its green cover, the Rajasthan government is making small efforts to turn state-run engineering campuses green.
Imagine planting a tree at the beginning of your academic year and nurturing it til the day you graduate? Or digging water conservation structures to revive depleting groundwater? Or dedicating a few hours every week to clean up your campus?
The Rajasthan government has ordered the launch of four such environmental initiatives in its state-run engineering colleges with the idea of eco-conservation in celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
The Better India (TBI) caught up with the State Secretary, Technical Education Department, Vaibhav Galriya (IAS) to know more.
Rajasthan runs 11 engineering colleges out of eight campuses. The department of technical education holds regular meetings with the principals of the colleges, the board members, experts from Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur (MNIT) and other institutions to discuss and deliberate steps that they can take to improve the performance of these engineering colleges.
Speaking to TBI, Galriya adds how they held four exhaustive meetings in the last six months, where several suggestions came up, and decisions were made to improve academics, infrastructure and environmental development in the colleges.
The technical department for the state also joined hands with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) with the aim to include one industry nominee in the departments of each stream of engineering. This is to help bring qualitative changes in the syllabus, update how the subjects are taught and keep students abreast with the latest changes in the industry.
The department is also planning to change how these colleges appoint their principals. Working with the guidelines of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and planning to issue some of their own in the coming weeks, the department intends to recruit principals for the state-run colleges on a contractual basis for three years.
But what stands out from the highlights of this meeting is the funding (about ten crores) that these colleges will be receiving for infrastructural development like procuring latest laboratory equipment.
By September, we will distribute about Rs 30 crores to help strengthen their infrastructure. Part of the project funding will be allocated for eco-conservation activities within their campuses. Many of these activities fall under the ambit of the Gandhian philosophy as the country celebrates the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, informs Galriya.
Here’s a sneak peek into these initiatives:
Tree plantation:
“Each new student will be encouraged and motivated to plant a tree when she/he joins this academic session. Their name will be put up next to the tree. From the day of their admission until the day they graduate (four years), they will be the guardians and nurturers of the tree. They will ensure their survival.”
The trees to be planted will be local or native varieties of the region the college is located in. With the average number of new students admitted every year is about 3500, you can imagine the magnitude and scale of the project and its results in the years to come.
Simultaneously, the government has directed all engineering colleges to involve students in the construction of water harvesting structures within the campus to tackle the depletion of groundwater. The students will put in certain hours for shram daan (voluntary service) to contribute to the construction of ponds, bunds, or other structures that can collect rainwater within the campus and help recharge the groundwater table.
The government is also planning to encourage the colleges to harness the power of the sun. “We want to utilise models that exist in the market that require no-input costs. Some companies set up solar panels at their own cost and charge you based on the power you consume per unit, which also is at a discounted rate, almost half the price.”
Keeping Bapu’s emphasis on ‘Swachata’ (Cleanliness) in mind, the students will also dedicate a few hours a week to keep their campus clean.
Gandhian philosophy:
To help students inculcate Gandhian values, the colleges will invite professors from other universities and experts on Gandhian philosophy conduct seminars and discussions.
“Mahatma Gandhi was instrumental not just in our struggle for independence but also in shaping our country and its values. Engineering students too are responsible citizens of the society, so the idea is to help them seek inspiration from his life and adopt values that will help them contribute to a better society to the best of their ability,” signs off Gariyal.
Post her wedding, she moved to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) area helping its residents heal their bodies. However, she applied that healing to Mother Earth as well when she turned her home into a green living space.
Dr Reema Lewis tending to her plants. (Source: Dr Reema Lewis)
“My husband and I decided to go solar back in 2010 when I was expecting my son. We had just bought a new house and thought that an eco-friendly home was the best gift we could give to him. One of the first steps we took was to install a solar water heater. All the bathrooms and kitchen are connected to the solar water system, and we use this water for bathing, washing veggies, cooking and drinking. I firmly believe that the earth can fulfil our needs, but not our greed. Everyone has to protect this earth for the next generation,” says Dr Reema, in an exclusive conversation with The Better India.
Four years ago, the family installed solar PV panels, and today, their entire home is powered by solar energy. Before installing solar panels, their electricity bill would touch Rs 10,000 per month, and during the summer season, it would go higher.
“Thanks to solar panels we have installed with assistance from Magenta Power, a leading player in the renewable energy solutions and electric vehicle charging infrastructure sector, our electricity bills have come down to under Rs 1000 per month on an average. Sometimes, we only have to pay the minimum fixed charges of Rs 300. On non-cloudy days, I have no use for conventional electricity at all. All the lights, fans, air conditioners, refrigerator and even my clinic, which is located at my house, are powered by solar energy. The entire shift set us back by Rs 2.5 lakh, but it’s like paying the old electricity bill for a little over two years in advance, while we receive a lifetime of free solar power,” informs Dr Reema.
She also gave up her petrol-guzzling vehicle and adopted an electric car. While she used to pay Rs 9000 per month for petrol, today it’s less than Rs 500 because she had an EV-charging unit installed in her parking space, which in turn is connected her solar PV panels on the rooftop.
Solar panels running the Lewis Household. (Source: Dr Reema Lewis)
“Today, I have a Mahindra e2o and use it to travel within the city. The range of my EV, on a complete single charge, is above 100 km, and it takes about six hours to acquire 100 per cent charge. One day, I had even taken my family to Lonavala and back,” she says.
Aside from running her house on solar energy, Dr Reema has also opted for natural composting and vermiculture to make optimum use of the waste generated to fertiliser and used the same in her terrace garden to a variety of plants, including mint, papaya, pumpkin, and cucumber among others.
“My family generates quite a bit of kitchen waste because we all love to consume fruits and vegetables. While this waste is biodegradable, we also generate non-biodegradable waste in the form of plastic and glass. For the former, I have adopted natural composting, where we use the sun and microorganisms. I use this compost for my plants. For vermicomposting, I use a special kind of earthworm called the red wriggler. They can degrade the compost faster than standard earthworms,” she says.
She disposes her recyclable plastics to various organisations working with the same through an app, which sends people to her home to collect it. The non-recyclable ones are sent to NGOs who collect it on behalf of farmers to package their products.
Dr. Reema doing vermiculture. (Source: Dr Reema Lewis)
Her objective is zero-waste, and she believes everyone can contribute to the same.
“Many people shy away from becoming eco-friendly because they feel it’s a time consuming and messy process. Despite being a mom, entrepreneur at home and responsibilities of taking care of my family, I barely spend 15 minutes every day keeping my home green. Being eco-friendly does not take more time. Every family should adopt an eco-friendly system at home be it in terms of solar power, natural composting or vermicomposting. There are also simple habits you can practice like carrying a cloth bag to the market instead of taking the plastic bag your grocery shop owner offers. I also source my milk directly from the dairy people,” she adds.
Green living at the Lewis Home. (Source: Dr Reema Lewis)
Dr Reema’s suggestions aren’t groundbreaking, but if all of us took a page out of her book, we will leave this planet in a better state than we found it. Moreover, her example has also shown us that in the long run, going eco-friendly will drastically reduce our cost of living.
These are advantages we can all get behind.
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)
Like this story? Or have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.
The current situation in Mumbai and Chennai is the biggest irony that India is witnessing. While one city is wading ankle-deep in water, the other is importing water with the rivers, lakes and groundwater tables going dry.
Dig deeper into the water scarcity of Chennai and how its residents are carrying out their daily activities and one will realise the degree of desperation. Many residents are shelling out double the usual amount to private water tankers, underlines an NDTV report.
Interestingly, Chennai apartments within 15 metres of any freshwater resources are mandated to have Rain Water Harvesting structures. There are more than 1,400 water bodies in the Chennai Metropolitan Area, and if every apartment had followed the guideline, then, perhaps, the city would not have been parched right now.
However, it is not too late for you to implement effective water management strategies to prevent water shortages in urban spaces. If you are a potential apartment buyer, then here are five factors to keep in mind to meet your water needs:
Sources of water supply vary from one city to another. For instance, Delhi is primarily dependent on rivers Yamuna and Ganga, Chennai relies on groundwater and so does Bengaluru along with the water from Cauvery river, and Mumbai meets the requirements from its lakes.
So you must inquire for how long the groundwater tables can sustain if the quality is likely to deteriorate due to water pollution and if there is a provision that can recharge the underground water.
If you are in a city that is entirely dependent on its natural water bodies, then be ready to experience a water shortage in case of scanty rainfall. Chennai did not receive sufficient rain in 2018 and, a year later, the city is suffering.
2) Water Metres To Monitor Water Consumption
Just like the role that report cards play in a student’s life, a water metre in your building can motivate you to perform better vis-a-vis your water consumption habits.
Even if you manage to install a metre in your house to use water judiciously, the effort will be defeated if your neighbours are reckless in water consumption. A system of checks and balances can show you how much water can be saved every day.
Installing water metres in every flat was one of the three reasons how ‘The Greens’ society comprising of 171 flats in Bengaluru managed to cut their Rs 16 lakh water bill by half. Read how.
Recycling grey water is another reason why The Greens Society is succeeding in water management. An initial investment in a Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) is helping the residents save 2-3 tankers of water every day. The recycled grey water is used for gardening and flushing purposes.
Find out if the apartment has invested or is likely to invest in an STP to meet water demands for toilets, washing utensils and cars, and watering plants. In an era where the availability of freshwater is getting more and more uncertain, reusing the waste water can be the smart thing to do.
4) Rain Water Harvesting
From Mumbai, Bengaluru to Chennai, water authorities in urban areas are gradually making installation of RWH system mandatory in apartment buildings. As per Maharashtra Groundwater (Development and Management) Rules, 2018, builders will get permission to construct a complex of 100 square metres or more only if RWH structures are provided in the plan.
Harvesting rainwater is the simplest and most effective alternatives to using freshwater supply. Of course, the rainwater might not be sufficient for an entire year, but it can meet water demands for a couple of months depending on the capacity of the structure and the consumption. Besides meeting water demands, it can reduce water bills as well.
Here is a case study of how residents in Chennai have adapted the simple method of storing every drop of water.
As a resident of an apartment that receives sufficient water daily, it is important to be water efficient at an individual level as well. You can do so by installing water-saving tap adaptors that control the flow of water. Water aerators have the potential to cut down the water discharged, from six litres per minute to just 2-3 litres.
The biggest advantage of water aerators is that it does not use space, is a one-time investment and can be done in a hassle-free manner. While some builders provide this system, you can also give it a consideration.
Alpa Gala, a resident of Mumbai has helped close to 7,000 families in the city cut down water wastage by 60 per cent just by installing a water aerators. Read more here.
India’s demand for water is likely to be twice than its supply by 2030 points out a NITI Aayog report. This means that millions of people, including you, in the country will face severe water crisis and around 6 per cent of India’s GDP will be negatively affected.
In such a grave situation, conserving water becomes the need of the hour and it is up to how socially conscious you can be in your actions.
Before you scroll down any further, I want you to look at the two satellite images below. The first is from 2009, an aerial view of what is now called the Airshed Park in Vasant Kunj. The second image is from 2019.
See the difference in the green cover?
Aerial view of the Airshed park. 2009 vs 2019
Once an abandoned and neglected park on a four-acre stretch of land, it is today a lush green area with more than 300 species of flora in the range of 10,000 native fruit-bearing trees, herbs, shrubs, host and nectar plants, air detox plants as well as vegetables!
What these two images reflect is the impact a community can create when they join hands to revive and reclaim a dying park.
The Better India (TBI) got in touch with the team behind this spectacular initiative, which has been instrumental in creating five such urban forests in the national capital. Speaking to TBI, Vimlendu Jha, founder of the city-based NGO, Swechha India, recalls,
I moved to Vasant Kunj in 2004-2005. In these years, we were actively working for the issues that plagued the river that runs through the heart of the capital, Yamuna. The park was not very far from where I resided. When I walked around the park, I realised it was abandoned and deserted. Incidentally, this was also the time when we were actively working on our annual campaign ‘Monsoon Wooding’ where we plant, promote and protect trees through citizen engagement. So we thought, why not revive this abandoned park?
In action
In 2007, Vimlendu and his team decided to start small and planted about 100 plants. Jha asked his gardener to take care of the batch to ensure they survived. He shelled out money from his pocket for the same. When the first year displayed excellent results, Vimlendu and his team continued to add 100-200 plants every year to the park.
It was three years ago (in 2016) when they decided to formally adopt the park from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and have, ever since, been actively working on developing the space into an ‘Airshed’ that would act as the lungs of the area.
Vimlendu wrote a proposal to The American Centre about making the park a model for other communities to follow and was able to gather funding to execute it.
Today, the results are out for everyone to see. A Google earth view now shows not only an increase in the density of green but the people can also feel the improved air quality in the neighbourhood. The temperature in the area has come down by three-four degrees when compared to the rest of the city, thanks to the blooming mini-urban forest.
From a mere five per cent, the park today has 90 per cent green cover.
Lush green park
The verdant green airshed park also boasts of a butterfly garden, a kitchen garden which grows vegetables for the gardeners, drivers and other workers in the neighbourhood, and a 400-meter long trail. It also has its compost pit where dead and fallen leaves are converted into 400-500 kgs of organic manure every month to nurture plants, both old and new.
Some of the trees include orchid, burflower, black mulberry, sacred fig, sausage tree, Indian gooseberry, banyan, guava, Gulmohar, pomegranate, jujube, etc. Other shrubs and herbs (both medicinal and culinary) include holy basil, sweet basil, curry leaf, hibiscus, fountain grass, lemon grass, Indian asparagus, cinnamon basil, long pepper, turmeric, stevia, cardamom, etc.
The shade detox garden includes varieties like syngonium, spider plant, money plant, aloe vera, other indoor ferns, etc. Vegetables include sweet potatoes, bitter gourd, lady finger, aubergine, tomatoes, pumpkin, spinach, fenugreek, etc.
Imagine if this model is replicated, in the other 8,000 government-run parks in Delhi, what then would the scale of change be?
Work in progress
“Many of these parks are abandoned and in a neglected state due to a shortage of staff and financial stress on government departments to maintain them. Vasant Kunj has about 40 small and medium-sized parks with only four horticultural gardeners to look after them? How is it humanly possible to ensure their survival? While it is important to demand action from the government, we, as citizens, have a civic responsibility too. The model we have created at Vasant Kunj proves how, with limited resources, community participation and good intent a community can work together to convert small pieces of abandoned land into air sheds or air catchment areas in their cities.”
While planting is no rocket science, Vimlendu adds how growing native varieties require care and maintenance. The joy is not planting but in ensuring that it survives. And therefore, the first year is critical. Now the team has given the park to the MCD.
“Even if, for some reason, the government isn’t able to maintain the park, it won’t be affected, because over the last decade the trees in the park have become self-sufficient to care for themselves.”
Every year, through the Monsoon Wooding campaign, Swechha India plants anywhere between 5,000 to 10,000 trees.
The verdant trail
They have worked with hundreds of school and university students, senior citizens, community members, and several international volunteers to build and maintain additional five native fruit forests, two upcycled butterfly gardens created using waste material from the schools, a couple of herb gardens within a small public park in Gurgaon and a shade air detox garden.
If you want to help further their work, support and contribute to their crowdfunding campaign.
If this story inspired you, get in touch with Vimlendu at vimlendu@swechha.in
As a child, I would always throw away my pencil once I used half. It was uncomfortable to write with them, but the real reason was peer pressure, as most of my classmates did the same.
For children, it is difficult to understand or even process the fact that eight million trees are cut every year to make 20 billion pencils worldwide. Unfortunately, even now, grown-ups fail to realise the massive deforestation globally.
However, when Akshata Bhadranna and Rahul Pagad from Bengaluru learnt about the grim figures, it served as a wake-up call that eventually gave birth to Dopolgy in September 2018. It is an organisation that sells eco-friendly products.
While this was the trigger, a series of events motivated the couple to switch to an eco-friendly lifestyle.
Akshata Bhadranna and Rahul Pagad, founders of Dopolgy
After moving back to Bengaluru from Indonesia, they saw the extent of plastic in household items, including utensils, home decor, clothes and shoes, all of which were transported from Indonesia to India in plastic packaging.
Recalling that the move served as a wake-up call for them, Akshata tells The Better India:
Indonesia is the world’s second largest plastic polluter as the usage of plastic is rampant in the country. It was strange that we did not realise the consequences until we came back to India. Even spoons were covered in plastic. It triggered us to make some lifestyle changes.
It started with the couple reading and watching videos on plastic pollution, which pushed them to give up plastic bags. Gradually, eco-friendly glasses, cutlery, soaps and loofah, replaced the plastic ones. The couple also started composting wet garbage at home.
During the switch, they saw how costly the eco-friendly products were, “It is not feasible to purchase a bamboo brush at Rs 200 if we change it every four months. Eco-friendly products, unfortunately, are considered a luxury. We wanted to make it a common man’s product. And so, with our savings, we started Dopolgy,” she says.
Initially, the duo sourced affordable eco-friendly products like loofahs, pencils, and toothbrushes from manufacturers at low prices and sold them on their website. They also took the products offline in mass events.
Low cost eco-friendly toothbrush
The response was phenomenal, which pushed the couple to take the next step by handling the manufacturing process as well. Rahul quit his marketing job and dedicated his time to developing the products. They imported a machine from China that manufactures pencils from discarded newspapers.
Explaining the reason for choosing pencils, Rahul says:
Pencils are used by all age groups, and it is the smallest item that can be replaced with ease without making any life-changing efforts. During our brainstorming sessions, we learnt that over eight million trees are cut to make pencils annually. To reduce deforestation, we began our newspaper recycling journey.
The newspaper is cut into pieces of 18×18 cm. The lead is manually rolled on that paper and deposited in a rolling machine. The pencils are allowed to dry naturally for 30 minutes.
Dried pencils are then put into a dryer for one hour at 220° Celsius.
Polishing machines give the final finish to make the pencil smooth. Finally, the product goes through the cutting machine, where it is cut into determined sizes.
To make the process completely eco-friendly, the pencils are packaged in compostable boxes of craft paper.
So far, the duo has manufactured 10,000 pencils by recycling around 6,000 newspapers!
Apart from this, the duo also sources different types of seed paper like jasmine, marigold, coriander and onion from wholesale manufacturers and converts them into beautiful card pieces. Other products from these paper varieties include wedding cards, invitation cards, postcards, visiting cards, among others.
One of their best projects was on International Women’s Day this year. A corporate had ordered 150 seed cards on which female workers wrote their biggest fears and worries. The cards were torn, and the seeds were planted.
The symbolic exercise was done to bury their stress and problems with the help of seeds. It was also a gesture to give back to the society, says Akshata.
The Way Forward
A bridesmaid’s invitation card made from seed paper
Now that the couple has sold their products in different cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Panchkula, and Amritsar, they plan on expanding the organisation by manufacturing other stationery items. Currently, they are working on making sharpeners from waste tetra paks and rulers from recycled plastic.
Although there is increased awareness about using eco-friendly products that do not harm the environment, it is a long road ahead, the couple believes.
During the incessant rains that paralysed the city on 1 July this year, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai flushed out more than 13,694 million litres of rainwater into the sea. This is equivalent to the combined water capacity of Tulsi lake at 4,385 ml and Vihar lake at 9,924 ml that supply potable water to Mumbai.
At a time when several cities across the country are running dry, it is indeed unfortunate that a city that has the potential to harvest rain has to release it into the sea. However, there are a few environmentally and socially proactive people who are not only changing their lifestyle but also innovating ways to conserve water.
Subhajit Mukherjee, the founder of city-based NGO, Mission Green Mumbai, has found a cost-effective solution to the problem of rainwater wastage using PVC pipes and a water barrel/drum.
Subhajit Mukherjee
Thanks to the attention the solution has received, the Malad resident is now installing rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharging system in schools and private societies.
In an exclusive interview with The Better India (TBI), Mukherjee revealed that the idea was initially shared by retired IPS officer and governor of Pondicherry, Kiran Bedi, almost a month ago.
“I spoke to her and researched further about how a system like this could be adopted. I got in touch with engineers at IIT Bombay who were able to help with the modifications required to make the system effective. Even they thought that the idea was cost-effective and wouldn’t require complex engineering knowledge to build. And, at the same time, it would give us immediate results.”
How does the system work?
A sketch to explain the functioning of the system
The concept is straightforward. It channels water that falls onto your terrace into a pit underground to conserve and revive groundwater and other water bodies like ponds, lakes, and deep tube wells. It can be extracted for use too.
Mukherjee explains the different ways in which rainwater can be harvested.
One way is to dig a pit and create a catchment area to accumulate rainwater. Once dug, this pit is filled with small pebbles or stones to prevent evaporation. Once it starts raining, the rainwater falls into the pit through the crevices or gaps between the rocks and stones that cover it. Over some time, once full, this rainwater starts seeping into the ground, recharging the groundwater table.
Another advantage of adding these stones and pebbles is to avoid any pedestrian accidents. (e.g. since the pit is full of rocks, no passerby will fall into it).
Mukherjee’s second method gaining rapid popularity on social media involves a blue barrel and PVC pipes. This method is used not only to recharge groundwater but also to use the collected water for secondary purposes.
Take a barrel of the size and capacity you need and drill some holes around its surface.
Dig a 3×3 ft or 5×5 ft pit, install the drum in it and connect it with a PVC pipe leading to the terrace. Fill the cavity with pebbles and stones to prevent mud from entering the drum and wedge the drum firmly.
Benefits?
Mukherjee adds how the drum can hold water for seven to 10 days as it takes time for the water to seep entirely into the ground. He has suggested the institutes, who have installed the system, to use the harvested water to mop floors, water trees or clean toilets.
“Think about it, a school, on an average, needs at least 5,000 litres of water every month for floor mopping. Imagine saving 5,000 litres of rainwater every month during the monsoon season. This accounts for saving close to 20,000 litres of water for cleaning and mopping over four months.”
Also, if installed in societies, this water can be used for the secondary purpose of washing vehicles, adds Mukherjee.
“There are more than 18 lakh vehicles in the city. If we use five litres of water to clean one vehicle, imagine the lakhs of litres of water that is being wasted. This harvested rainwater can be used to tackle that wastage or even mop common spaces within societies.”
While installing these units, one must remember to keep them at least 10 to 20 feet away from the main building to prevent the water from seeping into the building walls and making them weak.
After getting more than a thousand calls, Mukherjee has created a video which explains the entire process of installing the system. Watch it below:
Shedding light on the time taken to set up the system, he says, “It takes no more than two to three hours depending on the size of the pit and the labour available. In a school, with the help of 100-200 students, we can do it within two hours.”
He has executed the project is more than 33 schools in the last month, working with almost 20,000+ students. He aims to scale this number up to 100 schools soon.
“The kids have a lot of fun doing it. They play and learn as they dig the ground and collect pebbles and stones to add to the pit. Our focus is on schools to increase awareness. Kids are the best medium to bring about this change. I want to especially thank all the principals of the schools who have displayed unwavering support for the project. The kids proudly tell their parents about how they built this pit. We are hoping it will motivate their colonies and societies to do it too.”
The cost for the entire installation can range between Rs 2,500 to 5,000 based on the availability of resources and labour required, in a lot of spaces where drums and pipes are available, it is done for free, says Mukherjee.
What the drum looks like
“But when we are installing these pits in schools, I do involve some labour, because I don’t want children to pick up the drum. Sometimes, when the school doesn’t have a drum, I shell money from my pocket,” he says.
In a final message to citizens, Mukherjee says, “It is indeed unfortunate that we have huge towers in the city, but we fail to do something as simple as harvest rainwater every monsoon, that too in a place where it rains abundantly. As humans, water is the first element we are exposed to, like in the womb of our mothers. How can we not work towards conserving it? We need to conserve water in order to consume it. This system is easy to install and is much like creating a mini-well. We need to take ownership of the quality of life that we deserve. This is one way of doing it.”
If this story inspired you and you want to join Subhajit Mukherjee on his mission, write to him at trees.subhajit@gmail.com
The first time a young Arunachalam was introduced to the concept of saving rainwater was when his mother called him to help her collect rainwater in an unda (giant copper vessel). His family was able to collect 500 litres of water in each of the four vessels they had. Though rain for him was a time to play with his friends, he was intrigued at the idea of collecting the rainwater.
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From then on, the arrival of the monsoons for Arunachalam living in Kallal village, Tamil Nadu, meant not only fun but also collecting rainwater for daily needs.
He recalls how his mother covered each vessel with a veshti (a garment that is typically wrapped around the waist) to filter the water which was then boiled and used for drinking and cooking purposes.
N Arunachalam
No wonder that his favourite subject in his Civil Engineering course was Hydraulics where he formally learnt various water-saving concepts including Rain Water Harvesting (RWH).
After graduating, he joined the engineering division of the Public Works Department in Madurai. Pursuing his faith in the concept of RWH, he promoted the concept across Madurai in educational institutes, corporations and government offices through many awareness programmes.
In fact, he was instrumental in helping government offices harvest water.
During my 33-year-old career with the PWD, I have lived in two houses and in both of them, I did not take the government water connection as the harvested rainwater sufficed the water needs of my family, he tells The Better India (TBI).
Arunachalam has come up with a simple but unique method of conserving rainwater which has been adopted by schools, multinational corporations and apartment buildings.
Here’s How The RWH System Works
The middle the terrace where the majority of the water gets collected is lower than the rest of the terrace. The water collected in this pit is sent to the tank on the first floor via pipes. The mouths of each pipe are fitted with a netted cloth to stop debris and other waste from entering the pit.
The pit has three layers of filtration – river pebbles, charcoal and fine sand. Arunachalam advises that for hygiene purposes, one must wash the pebbles in a mixture of antiseptic liquid and water multiple times before placing them in the pit.
In the final step, the filtered water is transported to another tank with a capacity of 11,000 litres. This water is used for cooking and drinking purposes.
In times when the tank overflows, the spillage is sent to an underground sump connected to a borewell which supplies water to Arunachalam’s home for non-potable use and also helps with underground water recharge process.
The pH value (a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution) of the filtered water at Arunachalam’s house is 7, which is the standard level recommended by health experts, “The water is safe enough to prevent health complications like kidney stones. The rice cooked from using this water is extremely healthy.”
When asked what one can keep in mind before installing a rainwater harvesting system, Arunachalam gives a basic formula for a family of four:
Water for Drinking: 12 litres per day
Water for Cooking: 16 litres per day
Total water consumption per day: 28 litres
Annual consumption: around 11,000 litres (10,220 litres + extra for guests)
While adopting rainwater harvesting, one has to keep in mind that the size and capacity of the structure not only depends on consumption but also the rainfall patterns. For instance, an average 110 mm rainfall is needed to harvest 11,000 litres of water and Madurai gets 840 mm of rain on an average every year. So it takes just a week for Arunachalam to store water for an entire year.
The innovator has named his terrace ‘Akshayapatra’ (an inexhaustible vessel) as it is the area that collects the majority of the rainwater, “We use our terrace for saving water, gardening, walking and also to generate electricity via solar panels. It is amazing to see how one area can be used for multiple things.”
The structure at Arunachalam’s house saves 16,000 litres of rainwater annually. The entire process is a one-time investment that costs around 2.5 lakhs and it has been almost three decades since Arunachalam received a water bill as he does not use government supplied water.
The potential for conserving rainwater in states like Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu is very high. A city like Mumbai receives up to 700 mm of water in a single day [during monsoons]. If every citizen practices RWH then water-related problems could be cut significantly, says the 72-year-old.
At a time when more and more cities in India are turning into water stressed regions, Arunachalam has a special appeal, “We are extracting groundwater without giving back to Mother Earth. In olden days my mother used to say ‘do not waste money like water’. It has now changed to ‘do not waste water like money’. I request every citizen to take steps and conserve as much water as possible.”
If you wish to get guidance about installing a Rainwater Harvesting System at your home or workplace, you can reach out to N Arunachalam at: 877-8654745.
Wing Commander Puneet Sharma was jet-lagged and wide awake in the wee hours of the morning.
Trying not to disturb his family members, he made his way to the living room and started typing. He was finally making an effort to translate an idea that was floating in his mind for the last seven days.
Satisfied with what he had penned down, he pressed enter.
It is four in the morning. For those living in Pune lets meet and clean the city. No matter how small it may appear in the beginning, I am sure we can do our bit to provide much needed impetus to Clean India Movement. Let us spend two hours every week to make the city beautiful, read his Facebook post on October 9, 2014.
Interestingly, this was a few days after India’s biggest cleanup movement ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ was launched by PM Narendra Modi.
Puneet’s post received a positive response, and on October 12, seven citizens including Puneet and his two children kick-started the cleanliness drive at the Pune railway station.
Wing Commander Puneet Sharma
The volunteers spent their day in clearing the litter and sensitised the vendors on the station to keep bins that could prevent the garbage from spilling on the tracks and platforms.
The next weekend, he created a Facebook page called ‘Swachh Pune-Swachh Bharat’ to display the group’s activities in a formal manner.
That was in 2014. What started with seven people has now turned into a citizen-driven movement of over 100 volunteers that organises various activities every weekend to make the city hygienic.
The best part about this group is that it has not taken a single break in the last five years!
Speaking to The Better India, Puneet, who was a former fighter pilot with the Indian Air Force (IAF) for 23 years, says:
By virtue of being a soldier, protecting society comes naturally to me. I wanted to go beyond the call of duty and protect the environment. Like everyone, I was also bothered by the garbage spewed on roads, paan stains and overflowing bins. Swachh Bharat gave me the much-needed push to make a change.
From mandis (markets), railway stations, bridges, bus stops, rivers, lakes, hill stations to forts, Puneet and his team of volunteers visit public places every weekend on Saturday and Sunday, and conduct the following activities:
– Sensitise the locals through street plays and flash mobs.
– Involve locals, clear the garbage or beautify the spot via paintings.
– Segregate on the spot the waste and send it to the concerned organisation/authorities
During the monsoons, they also plant trees.
While the plastic waste is sent to Rudra Environmental Solutions, an organisation that converts it into poly-fuel, the remaining waste is handled to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC).
The civic body often lends a helping hand to transport the waste to the dumping yards and even gives them brooms and buckets.
Until the group gained credibility, the cleanup drives were funded by Puneet to provide safety gears like gloves, masks and garbage bag.
Today, the activities are either sponsored by the citizens or through the CSR wing of corporates.
Memorable Events By Swachh Pune-Swachh Bharat
Cleanup activity at Magarpatta flyover
In terms of beautification, the pillars of Magarpatta flyover, Shivaji Nagar railway station and one of the public walls in Viman Nagar are the most significant examples of turning filthy spots into beautiful artwork walls.
The pillars were once infamous as a urinal spot. The volunteers removed all the illegal posters and paan stains, cleaned each of the 26 pillars, and painted Warli figures over them.
Similarly, piles of garbage would lie unattended near the exterior walls of the railway station and outside a 2.5 km in Viman Nagar.
Today, these places are clean, and garbage is no longer thrown there as no one likes to dirty something so attractive and pleasant-looking, says Puneet.
Another memorable event took place on India’s 70th Independence Day. Close to 1,500 volunteers from NGOs, corporations, educational institutions gathered in the city and cleaned 70 different areas.
The cleanup drive at Sinhgad fort saw a team of youngsters entertaining the tourists with live music as the volunteers lifted plastic bottles, leftover food and so on.
“The live music played a huge role in grabbing the attention of the tourists as some of them even joined us,” says Puneet.
So far, the group led by Puneet has conducted over 500 cleanliness drives. The mass movement has even witnessed volunteers branching out and starting their own NGOs or volunteer groups to carry out such activities in their respective areas.
Talking about his future vision, Puneet says, “I was able to groom people and get them together because of my professional skills. I want to create a momentum where citizens become mass leaders, and they take forward such activities across India.”
Puneet and his core team comprising 20 members, have already started working towards creating SWAG (Swachh Warrior and Guardian) clubs in educational institutions of the city. These clubs will be responsible for maintaining cleanliness in and around their campuses.
To mark Gandhi Jayanti this year, Puneet and his volunteers plan to organise 100 cleanup-related activities in the city.
Puneet Sharma’s dedicated efforts to make his city clean and green is proof of how citizens have the power to make a huge difference and make the society a better place.
“Do you remember what your mom used to say while feeding you food when you were young? ‘Eat Raaja!’ That is precisely how the name my café located between two temples in Malleswaram came about,” beams former radio jockey turned entrepreneur, RJ Raaj.
For more than 45 years, Eat Raaja was a humble juice shop run by Raaj’s father. After he passed away, Raaj left his successful 12-year-old radio career behind and took over.
The uniqueness of Eat Raaja goes much beyond its name. Different from any other cafés you may find in the vicinity, this one allows you to devour the taste of mom-cooked recipes by featuring offerings prepared with love by mothers.
From serving fresh and unsweetened natural juices in fruit shells to using steel, paper, and banana leaves, the café has adopted several practices that set it apart from any regular eatery in Bengaluru.
It not only composts its wet waste, but it also harnesses the power of citrus to make natural bio-enzyme cleaners and turns wet waste into eco-friendly compost and fertilisers.
In an exclusive interview with The Better India, Raaj mentions that this journey to zero waste began 13 months ago.
“Before that, I didn’t even know what the concept of zero- waste was. Having worked in radio for almost 12 years, I was already in touch with Vani Murthy and Meenakshi Bharath, who are the doyennes of waste management and were immensely instrumental in guiding me.”
“Our shop is located in between two temples, both of which generate large amounts of waste, I often saw devotees, seek blessings there, come out and pollute our surroundings. Also, when my father ran the shop, he used single-use plastic cups, straws, PET bottles and carry bags. I began questioning these waste generation habits and decided that the only way forward was to start managing my waste in a sustainable way.”
Vani suggested Raaj begin with segregating the restaurant’s waste. While he was aware of the concept of composting, when Murthy told Raaj about how the citrus fruit waste from his shop could be used to create bio-enzymes or natural cleaners, he was left astounded.
There was no looking back.
“Ever since I have never used chemicals for washing my clothes, floors, and even the toilet. All the citrus is made into bio-enzyme, the rest of the fruit scraps would either go to make compost or be fed to cows.”
He makes almost 100 litres of bio-enzyme per month. These are sold separately in re-purposed beer bottles.
Raaj has also eliminated the use of single-use plastic and replaced them with glasses, and made the difficult business choice of saying no to PET bottles. This meant not only doing away with Cola bottles at the shop but also packaged water bottles, which were the biggest revenue earners.
Finally, he replaced straws with other alternatives such as paper straws, reusable steel straws, straws made from fallen banana leaves, bamboo straws and lately, wheat paste straws.
The café also stopped giving out any plastic or carry bags and encouraged customers to BYOB—bring your own bag.
Raaj also began a group on Facebook that has now become a huge tribe of conscious, sustainable living zero-wasters who share tips to adopt the lifestyle.
Apart from using steel, glass, and compostable cutlery, one of the most eye-catching innovations that Raaj, who calls himself a waste-engineer was able to bring about at the café was serving juices in fruit shells.
Shedding light on how the idea came about he says, “As a radio jockey you have to churn out new content every day, so the element of innovation and creativity was always there. I wanted to attract people. The idea came to me when I looked at the Kiran variety of watermelon, which is small in size. I picked it up and cut them into two and decided to use them as cups. The very concept of selling juice in the shell of the melon gained popularity among customers and marathon runners in no time. The use of the shell also ensured that I was saving 200 ml of water that would otherwise be used to wash a glass.”
He soon started branding the juice as a ‘zero-waste juice.’
Juice parcelled in re-purposed glass bottles with banana leaf cap. Source: Instagram/Eat.raja
“Once the farmer harvests the fruit, he sells it to the middleman, who sells it to a shopkeeper. I buy it and sell juice to the customers in the shell. Once the customer drinks it, I either turn it into compost or feed it to the cows, who eat it, dispose of it in the form of dung which goes back and nourishes the soil. In Kannada, we have a saying that translates to, ‘What comes from the soil has to go back to the soil.’ And a simple activity like selling juice in a fruit shell closes this loop between nature and man without generating any carbon footprint.”
He then experimented with the concept with pineapple too, scooping the flesh out to turn it into juice and serve it in a shell with the crown as the lid. Without a doubt, it was a hit too.
Today he sells an array of fruit juices and milkshakes. Some of these include a combination of pineapple and watermelon, mint, lemon, musk melons, sun lemon (much like lemon, sweet and 20x the size of it), chakota, dragon fruit, grapefruit, banana gulkand, peach milkshake, etc.
He also uses a variety of marketing tactics to keep the customers interested. Like during the IPL 20-20 season, he sold some juices at Rs 20. He is now launching newer juices with curiosity peaking names. For example, kidney juice made from cantaloupe, since it is good for kidney stones. Other newer varieties that he seems to be tight-lipped about include cigarette juice and something known as the cancer-killing juice.
To avoid the wastage of paper, all announcements in the café are made via a blackboard. The municipal truck that arrives to collect wet waste returns empty. Instead, he is making money out of it by selling bio-enzyme cleaners for Rs 100 a bottle.
Making Announcements on a black board. Source: Facebook/Suhas Shetty
Raaj believes what he is selling at his shop is not just juice, but the concept of zero-waste. He also creates awareness about waste management through awareness programmes, and has interacted with students from more than 200 colleges.
He ends with a few simple tips for citizens who want to switch to a zero-waste lifestyle:
1) Refuse all single-use plastic disposable items. Start saying no to the polythene bags from your chaiwalla, vegetable vendors, fruit or flower sellers
2) Say no to plastic straws and PET bottles; carry your own steel straws, and glass or copper bottles.
3) Say no to single-use items.
4) The tagline of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike says, ‘My waste, My responsibility.’ So take responsibility and segregate your waste.
If this story inspired you, get in touch with him on Instagram here, write to him at eat.raja@gmail.com. Or call him on 7353078600.
Tsetan Dolkar recalls how, as a child, she spent the harsh winters at her home in Sakti village, Leh district, around a bukhari (traditional heater) listening to her family members praising her grandfather for the abundant availability of firewood—a fuel central to surviving the unforgiving cold months.
At the time, she had not really taken note of these comments, as she had seen her family offer wood to fellow residents in her village, monasteries and old-age homes during the winters.
“Growing up with an abundance of wood around me, I did not realise the effort it took for my grandfather to plant, raise and nurture these trees. Although I used to regularly shoo away goats and water the trees in these orchards as a child, it was when I grew up that I realised the importance of his lifelong work, particularly the time when my parents were constructing the family home. Without the wood available at the family orchard, they would have had to spend lakhs just to buy the required construction material. That’s when I decided to talk to him about his work,” says Dolkar, an Assistant Professor of Geography, speaking to The Better India (TBI).
Over the course of five decades, 84-year-old Tashi Pembar Siaser has helped plant and nurture approximately 4,000 trees spread over 40 kanals (5 acres) at an altitude of over 11,500 feet. Many of the willow and poplar trees, along with other variant species, are now third and fourth generation trees. While their tree trunks are used extensively in the construction of homes, the wooden twigs are laid together for roofing in traditional structures, which in local parlance is called ‘talbu’.
Tsetan Dolkar with her grandfather Tashi Pambar Siaser.
“Many of my neighbours have taken saplings from me. I encourage it because once the tree survives and grows, it becomes a real source of income, unlike an annual crop. Upon seeing this in play, many people began growing these trees,” says Tashi.
Born in 1936 in Sakti village, 45 km away from Leh, Tashi was the eldest of eight siblings. Born into poverty, his father passed away when he was just 15 years old. The entire responsibility of caring for his grandparents and siblings fell on his shoulders.
“I was struggling to make ends meet for my large family. There were days when collecting fuelwood, and dung cake was a family affair during the day. We would pluck and collect twigs from wild bushes. For social occasions like marriage or death ceremony, our neighbours would hire us to collect firewood,” recalls Tashi.
When Tashi began planting these trees, he had no idea that he was doing something to protect the environment. His plantation drive was to meet his family’s needs.
A scenic patch of green in a cold desert. Tashi’s efforts made this possible.
“Back then, diverting water from streams wasn’t a big hurdle. We had enough water to plant them. It was only much later in life that I heard that planting trees and the general greenery help maintain air quality,” adds Tashi.
He recalls that it was sometime during his late thirties that he began planting trees. At the time, there were only patches of trees owned by a few households in the village. A cousin brother, who owned a piece of land in the village, gave him a few saplings free of cost. Carrying the saplings on horseback, Tashi began his plantation drive.
Fruits of Tashi’s labour.
“The work became never-ending. I also got saplings from other villages like Chemrey, Phyang and Sham. In fact, at one point, I acquired saplings from the Forest Department, who incentivised this exercise by paying me 50 paise for planting a tree. They even gave me Rs 4,000 for constructing a wall around the plantation to protect the trees from goats. These animals were particularly a threat to newly-sown sapling or offshoots of trees, which they peel off and eat. Nearly every family at the time reared goats,” he recalls.
What began as an individual pursuit eventually turned into a full-fledged family affair because hiring labour was out of the question. For his wife and eight children, watering the plants and protecting them from goats became a question of duty.
“Now, they’re reaping the benefits of this plantation in terms of construction material, fuelwood for winter and so. Most of my children, who are now living separately with their children, now have all the wood they need for their household needs,” he says.
Traditional roof construction in Ladakh made with poplar wood.
For Tsetan Dolkar, her grandfather’s work has become a real source of inspiration.
“It’s amazing how a simple farmer can leave behind a real legacy with his sheer hard work and dedication. He was one of the first farmers to grow cauliflower, cabbage, carrot, green peas and so on in the village, which is located in the eastern part of Ladakh. Growing these plants in these cold and high-altitude regions was once considered impossible. Today, Sakti village is known for its high production of green peas,” she says.
Moreover, even today, Tashi continues to impart lessons to his grandchildren. “My grandfather told me about the ideal length of saplings, and the depth of the hole one must make while sowing it. He said offshoots, when growing up, are straighter and told us that it takes more years for these trees to grow in our village than other areas at lower reaches than ours. Fortunately, since these trees take a few more years to grow, they are sturdier and stronger,” recalls Dolkar.
Tashi Pambar Siaser (Extreme Left), his granddaughter Tsetan Dolkar and his wife and partner in the tree plantation drive Tsering Dolkar.
However, when asked whether it’s possible to expand these plantations today, the octogenarian expressed his doubts. There isn’t a scarcity of wood, but watering, protecting and looking after these trees has become a concern with most working youngsters either engaged in their own business or government service, he claims. In other words, there aren’t enough people to take care of them, besides concerns over water supply. Nonetheless, his work is inspiring future generations.
“His work represents the age-old adage that hard work and dedication can allow us to attain anything. One important insight I gain from his work is that to supplement a farmer’s income, planting these trees is a great source of additional income. It is in tune with the environment’s needs, besides sustaining farmers financially. My father, who served in the Indian Army for 33 years (retiring three years ago) and my mother, a housewife, continue to do their part in planting trees, while I’ve also engaged in the same,” says Dolkar.
The current generation is reaping the benefits of his work.
Despite his doubts, Tashi wants youngsters in Ladakh to take over from where he left.
“It’s a great endeavour worth pursuing, especially with improved transportation, water diversion techniques and the availability of various government schemes like NREGA. People can plant trees with greater ease today, and it’s a profitable venture. In order to inspire people to plant trees, the focus must not merely be on its environmental benefits but also as a source of alternative livelihood. Only then we can ensure greater spurt of greenery in this cold desert,” he says.
From the throes of poverty to protecting the environment in this cold desert, the 84-year-old has come a very long way. What began as a venture to fulfil his family’s material needs has inadvertently become a remarkable example of sustainable development at its finest.
Picture Courtesy: Tsetan Dolkar
(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)
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It was just another day in the village until a sudden commotion came to sight.
A group of people with cameras had arrived at the otherwise isolated hamlet, and the locals were curious. From a distance, they looked like tourists gaping at the seemingly incessant trails of farmlands, or taking videos of the simplistic wonders of rural life, in awe.
A few moments later, an elderly individual stepped out of the group, which had a majority of youngsters. Directly addressing the curious villagers, he introduced himself and their agenda for the visit.
This man, the leader of the lot, was Brigadier (retd) P Ganesham, a well-known innovation mentor, who was at the time conducting one of the many Chinna (small) Shodha Yatras, in the interiors of Guntur district.
He was and still is on a mission to unearth gems of innovation in rural parts of India, especially Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
As a mentor, for the past 14 years, Brigadier Ganesham has identified and helped over 200 rural innovators, including Padma Shri awardee, Chintakindi Mallesham. And he does so under the aegis of his organisation, Palle Srujana.
A life in pursuit of rural innovation
Although started in November 2005, the seed of Palle Srujana goes long back in the past when Brigadier Ganesham was serving in the Indian Army.
Speaking to The Better India, he shares, “In my younger days, I would observe the ingenuity of soldiers to handle on-ground problems, even in the harshest landscapes. They are the real grassroots innovators who not only adapted but also found solutions, on or off combat. From building makeshift bridges to employing innovative ways of rescue or rehabilitation during disasters, their simple yet functional solutions inspired me to look beyond and imagine the kind of talent hidden in the rural folds of the country, and thus began my quest.”
Brigadier Ganesham started the organisation just after a month of retiring from the Army.
He adds that with the idea in place, his quest was soon streamlined after an experience at the National Innovation Foundation-India (NIF-India).
“While the event showcased several grassroots innovations from remote parts of the country, there was nobody from the then undivided state of Andhra Pradesh. I was shocked and decided to change that scenario on my own!” he says.
Since then, he has been travelling the length and breadth of Andhra Pradesh, and now Telangana as well, combing through villages in search of innovators.
Once they are identified, he reaches out and helps them realise the importance of their innovation and aid them in improving and scaling it up.
Since 2005, he has inducted 200 such innovations by helping them get patents, win national-level awards, and boost the overall commercial viability of the inventions.
“Honestly speaking, I have truly learnt a lot more in the last 14 years, than I ever have in the first 60 years of my life,” says the septuagenarian.
In the initial years, he began to reach out to innovators only through word of mouth, but eventually, to scale up the outreach, he started Shodha Yatras.
“Every three months, a team of volunteers conduct a Shodha Yatra, where they travel to villages and meet the residents telling them about this programme. During these visits, we put forth an audio-visual presentation to show the journey of our innovators and their innovations, and then we ask if they have any such idea to share. Obviously, in the beginning, most of them are hesitant to share, but they slowly open up. Sometimes many great innovators are hidden and inhibited because they are scared of being laughed at. These Yatras make sure that they feel comfortable enough to share reveal their creations,” he says.
Once the rapport is established, the team examines their ideas or prototypes and help them to either improve or groom it for better commercial scope. Once they are in the fold of the organisation, these innovators receive end-to-end assistance to success.
With its focus on practical devices for both agriculture and non-agriculture sectors, he shares that one of the first innovations pitched to them was that of an iron box that was fueled by gas and not coal.
A few others include a metallic stepper to aid in climbing coconut trees, a mobile charging unit that is powered by a solar panel, or even a weeding machine that is powered by an old scooter engine.
Interestingly, the prototypes of all these innovations (and more) are displayed in his home in Vayupuri, Secunderabad, that doubles as the organisation’s main office.
Brigadier Ganesham adds that it is a matter of pride that the greatness churned out of rural India has, over the years, earned them a lot of appreciation, all without any financial aid from banks, corporate CSRs or even the government.
The sustenance of the organisation and all the proceedings to push innovators have the best exposure, has been executed using part of his pension and donations from well-wishers and volunteer work.
“In the last 14 years, we helped the innovators shine in national exhibitions and competitions, and even get loans for manufacturing or scaling up. Till date, we have been able to generate almost four crore financial assistance for them,” he adds.
Today, out of the two hundred innovations, 26 are ready for sale, 24 have patents, 13 have bagged President awards, and 2 received Padma Shri awards!
A messiah of sorts for hundreds, Brigadier Ganesham, however, feels humbled by all the support and blessings received toward his work.
“I am just a facilitator. They are the real heroes whose innovations have not only inspired me but are truly changing life as we speak. I am just glad to have been the lucky one to see history of Indian technology and innovation in the making!” he concludes.
But, his modesty does not erase the fact that at the end of the day, he is the teacher or mentor who walked the extra mile to find potential in corner most areas of South India. Kudos to him!
Taking the concept of ‘My Garbage, My Responsibility’ to a whole new level, plogging is aggressively becoming a fitness fad across the world. The act of picking up trash while jogging to clean up the littered streets is a sure shot sign that citizens are increasingly becoming aware of plastic pollution.
Plogging, a portmanteau of ‘Plocka upp’ which means ‘pick up’ in Swedish and jogging, came up in 2016 in Sweden and garnered a massive response from the environmentally-conscious people and fitness lovers.
In no time, the concept spread to several countries, including India.
It was probably in 2017 that India’s first plog run took place in Delhi and, two years later, the country is all set to conduct the world’s largest pick-up-trash-while-you-jog activity.
The event organised by the NGO, United Way Bengaluru, will take place on 2 October this year across 50 cities covering 1,000 locations. The aim is to rope in 2.5 lakh citizens and further establish communities of ploggers in India.
The participants will be given gloves and trash bags necessary for the run. Several corporations and NGOs are likely to fund the event and organisations working in the field of waste management will take the onus of transporting and recycling the collected waste.
Speaking to The Better India (TBI), Ramakrishnan Ganesh, convener of Plog Run and one of the brains behind the pan-India event, says:
The multiple benefits of plogging are the reason for its instant popularity. While it is ensuring that waste management is just not the government’s job, it is also making people aware about waste segregation and the hazardous environment that plastic is capable of creating. In addition to that, it is improving the health of people.
Since it is the first time that a plog run will be organised at such a massive scale, the NGO recently conducted a trial in four cities (Pune, Delhi, Modipur and Bengaluru). It was done in collaboration with multiple corporations and close to 400 bags (2 tonnes each) worth of trash was collected.
Though United Way’s first plog run was conducted in Nandi hills, it was on Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary last year when the plog run in Bengaluru made headlines and created a wave among like-minded people across India.
As a tribute to Gandhi who staunchly believed in ‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’, United Way Bengaluru teamed up with organisations like Go Native, Namma Nimma Cycle Foundation, Let’s Be The Change and the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to organise the plog run last year on 2 October.
It was organised in 55 locations of the city that saw more than 7,000 people lift more than 30 tonnes of plastic waste comprising bottles, chips packet, and polythenes among others. The waste management agency Sahas collected and later recycled the waste.
People from all strata of the society including children, men, women, elderly, corporate employees to college students took part in the run. It was overwhelming for us to see so many citizens dedicating their holiday to lift garbage from the streets, something very rare in our country. Their participation resonated the willingness to make the country cleaner and greener. As littering is not restricted to just Bengaluru, we are very much looking forward to the pan-India event in October, Manish Michael, Chief Executive Officer from United Way Bengaluru tells TBI.
Since then, several plog run communities have sprung up in many cities including Pune, Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai.
Image Source: Plog.Run.
Plastic, which takes a minimum of 500 years to biodegrade, is a nuisance for our society, polluting the water bodies, harming marine life, poisoning the groundwater tables to clogging the drains during monsoons leading to floods and spreading diseases.
It is high time we stepped up and said no to the toxic item. If you wish to be part of the plog run, you can register for free here.
In November 2012, Punjab-based attorney, Kamaljeet Singh Hayer, lost his grandfather. The grand old man passed away at the age of 101. During his memorial service, a local MLA walked up to Singh, saying, “Your grandfather lived such a long and fulfilling life.”
This pushed Kamaljeet to introspect on the massive health shift between his grandfather and successive generations. His grandfather had passed without any ailments or a single day in a hospital, but his father died at 53 due to a massive heart attack, and his 10-year-old brother died of a brain tumour!
It was only a matter of time until the lawyer concluded that our health was directly related to the food on our plates.
Kamaljeet Singh Hayer
“You are what you eat. It is an irrefutable fact that our ancestors, including our grandparents, ate nutritious food and led a simple life. Their food wasn’t doused in chemicals, and they did not lead a sedentary lifestyle. They toiled hard in the fields to grow their food,” he says, in an interview with The Better India.
And so, in 2012, the lawyer who was earning almost Rs 1.5 lakh a month, decided to switch to organic farming. For the first three years, he juggled his legal profession along with agriculture. In 2015 though, he quit his job to become a full-time natural farmer.
He toiled and poured his sweat and blood into the pesticide-ridden dead soil and converted 20 acres of his family land into a biodiversity-based natural farm. This farm, in the village of Sohangarh (Rattewala) near Guru Harsahai town in Ferozepur district, not only makes his kitchen independent but also fetches him a stable and substantial income.
In conversation with The Better India, he narrates the story of how it all began.
Rows of trees
Having no background in farming, Kamaljeet spent a long time studying organic farming online. He came across the website of Kheti Virasat Mission (KVM) and called its Executive Director, Umendra Dutt, who invited him to attend a meeting of organic farmers.
“Umendra told us some eye-opening facts. He added how Punjab owned 1.5 per cent of the agricultural land in India, and yet, it used 18 per cent chemicals on its farms. He added that Punjab was a dying civilisation. It was no more an agricultural crisis but a struggle for survival. I couldn’t sleep that night. I wondered what I would do with Rs 1.5 lakh a month when I couldn’t use it to save my father or my brother. I am approaching 40, and if I didn’t do anything, my family and I would have a similar end.”
One of the turning points in his agricultural journey came when Umendra suggested that Kamaljeet attend a workshop organised by renowned scientist and organic farming stalwart, Dr Om Prakash Rupela. The scientist hailed from Hyderabad was adept at speaking Punjabi, and was leading the organic farming movement in Punjab.
“At the workshop, we raised questions about how states like Andhra Pradesh and Sikkim were moving towards organic farming, and yet farmers in Punjab were resistant to the switch. The conclusion was that Punjabi farmers wouldn’t believe anything until they witnessed a successful model. Dr Rupela suggested that he would set up a model that would inspire more farmers to make this organic switch.”
Kamaljeet, at the time, had never set foot on his agricultural land, had no labourers or experience in farming, and yet, he raised his hand and asked Dr Rupela to use his land for the model.
“When he asked me about my profession and package, I was honest. After knowing that I had zero knowledge about agriculture and earned Rs 1.5 lakh a month as a legal professional, he was astonished. He explained to me that the path I wanted to take was not going to be easy. He told me I would regret my decision.”
When Dr Rupela returned to Hyderabad, Singh called him every single day until he agreed to give the project a chance.
With late Dr Rupela
Dr Rupela analysed the quality of soil and water on the 20-acre patch that Kamaljeet had demarcated for the project, and found the soil doused in chemicals. According to him, it was practically dead and reviving it was a losing battle.
But Kamaljeet insisted that they continue the project. They began their work formally in January 2013.
The five components that Dr Rupela highlighted for the success of organic farming were diversity in crops, trees, livestock, birds, and microorganisms.
“In addition to his knowledge, Dr Rupela incorporated principles from successful models of experts like Subhash Palekar and Deepak Sachdev. He consulted international experts too. In six months, he created a design for the farm. His vision was to set that model up in three years.”
Meanwhile, fate had other plans. In 2015, Kamaljeet decided to quit law and become a full-time natural farmer to commit to the cause. But there was massive resistance from his family.
“My family wasn’t supportive of the idea. They thought I had gone mad. My wife even threatened to leave me at the time. But I had decided to quit my legal practice anyway.”
Six months into 2015, Dr Rupela was diagnosed with cancer, and passed away soon after. It was a shock and a loss that Kamaljeet has not fully recovered from.
“I felt orphaned. I was clueless and lost and cried for days. But my family and friends from KVM supported me. They told me to fulfil Dr Rupela’s vision. It took me a lot of trial and error and almost five years to complete this unique model.”
What makes this farm unique?
His own pond for rainwater harvesting
On 20 acres, the farm boasts of 1,500 trees of 120 different species. These are a mix of fruits, medicinal, forest and nitrogen-fixing trees, with shade area taking three acres of land. The rest of the farmland is used to grow and harvest more than 50 seasonal crops every year.
It also has a small pasture with herbs for cattle to produce nutritious milk and graze on. Moreover, there is a pond that harvests rainwater and canal water to meet farm needs.
Apart from rabi crops like wheat, black gram, chickpeas, flax seeds, lentils, pulses, yellow mustard, he also grows seasonal vegetables like radishes, carrots, spinach, coriander, potatoes, tomatoes, chillies, and four varieties of cauliflower.
Some of the kharif crops include bajra (kodo millet), jowar (sorghum), black rice, red rice, sugarcane, arbi (Taro root), turmeric. He also grows 20 varieties of fruits such as falsa (black currant), sapota, guava, shahtoot (mulberries), pomegranate, peach, plums, grapes, figs, mangoes, black plum, amla (Indian gooseberry), sweet lime, and orange.
The farm has more than 50 types of herbs like lemongrass, stevia, and basil, as well as 25 native livestock, including cows, buffaloes, goats, poultry, and birds.
Biodiversity on the farm
The farmer, who has recently started cultivating millet, believes in adding value to any product he puts on sale. He processes finger millet to make biscuits that are sold at Rs 500 per kg, black gram is converted into besan (gram flour) or bhujiyas, and wheat is served in the form of porridge or seviyan (vermicelli). In addition to selling fruits directly, he also converts them into jams and pickles.
Apart from using jeevamrutham to nourish the soil, he mulches the crop residue back into the soil. He also turns it into compost along with the livestock excreta.
Some of his important nitrogen-fixing trees include Moringa Oleifera and Khejri. The dry leaves, stems and roots of these trees, when in contact with the soil, convert atmospheric gas into nitrogen. When grown next to fruit trees, they improve yield too.
Some of the medicinal trees grown include neem, calotropis, and chaste tree. These leaves are soaked in cow urine or boiled in water and sprayed on the leaves of plants to protect them from pests and diseases.
Kamaljeet vouches for inter-cropping and multi-cropping and insists on growing native varieties of the crops. Apart from preserving these seeds, he also sells most of his farm produce locally.
A shift in the existing model
Apple-coloured Guava
Weeds are one of the leading issues he grapples with. To tackle them, he thought of the following trials:
a) Instead of harvesting the Kharif crop, he incorporated the biomass into the soil to nourish it.
b) He used the no-tillage method for three acres of land which will not be cultivated for two years.
With these two underway, he plans a third method, which requires creating a fruit forest.
To fulfil his mentor’s vision, he has laid the foundation stone for a training centre. Once the construction is completed, he aims to conduct training sessions for farmers there every quarter.
Currently, his farm has a daily footfall of 20-50 visitors, most of whom are farmers. He has been conducting free training sessions for them every month.
Farmer training session
He signs off with a message for his kisaan-saathis, saying, “Natural farming is difficult. So if you decide to undertake it, accept this challenge head-on. Also, understand that it is the only avenue that can help us improve our health. I encourage farmers to practice self-sufficient farming, which doesn’t turn them into slaves of the market. As a lawyer, I couldn’t stay at home in my village for a single day. But as a farmer, I don’t go to the city for long stretches because I am independent of the market and all my sales happen on my farm. So my message is, begin small. Start with a kitchen garden. Make it independent. This will ensure that you don’t use pesticides or chemicals on your crops. Once you have garnered enough experience, move to a commercial model.”
