Karnataka - Mysore

Doing their bit for environmental protection

Creative: Members of Paryaya displaying their newspaper bags in Mysore on Sunday.

MYSORE: Over a dozen women gathered in a big room on the premises of the Karnataka Exhibition Authority (KEA) at Doddakere Maidan here on Sunday to display their products at the 87-day long Dasara Exhibition. Belonging to Paryaya, an NGO, these women are doing their bit for the cause of the environment by producing items that are non-polluting.

Thanks to the initiative of KEA, the plastic menace at the exhibition had come down noticeably this year following the introduction of paper bags, which are produced by Paryaya’s women members. Although the exhibition is not a plastic-free zone, it has, however, declared the place “plastic-free” and “litter-free” to keep the surroundings clean and tidy. The exhibition authority has outsourced the task of distributing bags made of old newspapers to the NGO and the bags are given to visitors at the main entrance of the exhibition. The visitors are also requested to desist from using non-biodegradable items such as plastic bags.

This is the first time at a Dasara exhibition that the authorities have chosen to spread the message of minimising the use of plastics, by switching over to ‘greener’ stuff such as paper bags which do not cause pollution. “It is a just an attempt to minimise pollution and overcome problems caused due to indiscriminate use of plastic. By distributing paper bags to visitors, we believe the message will reach the people. It is a small step, but will make a difference,” explains KEA chief executive officer A.B. Ibrahim.

In a chat with The Hindu, Mr Ibrahim argued that there was qualitative improvement in garbage handling at the exhibition, as the use of paper bags had reduced the waste menace thereby helping the authorities provide a “visitor-friendly” ambience.

He said paper bags were given to each visitor free of cost and a group of five persons would get bags of a bigger size for keeping shopped items.

“The paper bags have been given to visitors ever since the expo started this year. Every day the bags are produced by the NGO. This initiative has been taken up for the cause of the environment and to encourage others to go greener,” he said. He went on to add that the drive to distribute such bags had encouraged the authorities to go a step ahead in sensitising visitors to minimise use of plastics and the significance of keeping the environment clean and safe.

According to Mr. Ibrahim, the exhibition premises were being cleaned twice a day and the person who had bagged the contract had been asked to dispose of garbage as an when it was collected.

The CEO maintained that visual and noise pollution had also been controlled at the expo this year by minimising the display of large advertisement hoardings and loudspeakers playing songs.

“Visitors should not feel like running out of the exhibition because of excess noise. It is a place for family entertainment and whatever is necessary to amuse them has to be done,” KEA authorities said.

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu