Viral Today: A Novel Initiative To Rid Plastic Bottles Waste in Tamil Nadu Forests
Chennai
A video of a novel initiative to rid Tamil Nadu forests of plastic bottle waste is going viral for creative environment conservation efforts in Velliangiri Hills in the Coimbatore district.
Shared by Tamil Nadu Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, Climate Change and Forests Supriya Sahu, the viral video gives a message for reducing plastic bottle waste in hill stations.
Watch the viral video here:
In a fantastic exercise Team #TNForest Coimbatore implemented an initiative to prevent littering of disposable water bottles by pilgrims visiting Velliangiri hills.Bottles were tagged & a refundable deposit of Rs.20 per water bottle was brought in. The team tagged 1.98 lakh… pic.twitter.com/Cc15DhqqVn
— Supriya Sahu IAS (@supriyasahuias) June 21, 2023
Appreciating the efforts of Tamil Nadu Forests Department, Supriya Sahu wrote, “In a fantastic exercise, Team #TNForest Coimbatore implemented an initiative to prevent littering of disposable water bottles by pilgrims visiting Velliangiri hills.”
The Forest Department officials had started tagging water bottles that are carried by pilgrims and tourists to Valliangiri Hills which are considered as sacred as Mount Kailash, the abode of Lord Shiva.
The officials tag and charge a refundable fee of Rs 20 per bottle and to date, 1.98 lakh bottles were tagged of which 1.66 lakh were returned while the rest of it was also collected and sent to recyclers.
“This prevented 14 tonnes of plastic waste from getting into the forest area,” Sahu added.
it is worth mentioning here that seven hills in the Velliangiri Hills area on the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu are considered to be a part of Mount Kailash.
The pilgrims who can’t visit Mount Kailash due to tough terrain, trek to the Velliangiri Hills to pay their obeisance from mid-February to mid-May.
5000-year-old Garukhuti Shiva Temple restored to ancient glory, courtesy Assam CM
