The theme being Planet vs Plastics for the World Earth Day today, we spoke to a few city folks who are striving hard to bring our attention to the grave issue of plastic pollution and its repercussions.
In full swing for years
Pack & Chew owner chef Nittin Mohan is among those who made his restaurant work on no-plastic concept for over a decade.
“We have a policy of not using pet bottles be it for water or juices. Besides, we don’t use plastic cutlery or packaging. What’s the harm in using pottery and glassware for once? Why can’t we get over our inclination towards plastic? I can happily boast of doing my bit for the longest and I am glad people be it my staff and customers too understand it and imbibe it in their day-to-day lives.
Vouching for sustainable living via focusing on paper recycling Manav Prakash from Universal Book Store adds, “Nature is giving us constant warnings to mend our ways and it’s high time we learn from our past mistakes. Planting trees and living a sustainable life is not difficult. It has been a long time since we switched to no-plastic packaging. Trust me, it does work if you are determined.”
The torchbearers
Many out there are doing their bit to make our city and planet a plastic-free space. The couple Radhika and Priyank Mishra, who left their corporate jobs, realised during the pandemic that everything was on hold except waste generation.
“It was then, after a detailed analysis, we concluded that plastic paper was any day a bigger menace than paper waste. We came up with the idea that we need to work on behaviour change and where we are working with housing societies, organisations and institutes. We guide them to include four aspects refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle. We have set up eight drop-off centers in the city and more are on radar. Then we take it forward to recyclers, but still, it’s a long way to go. We want to give the afterlife to plastic waste, so it doesn’t reach the earth fill,” shares Priyank from Sparkliv.
Then for a few, it’s time for the switch. Indroneel Banerjee former independent director of Pakka Ltd, with Chuk being its vertical at Ayodhya. The group collects bagasse (sugarcane remanent) from the sugar manufacturing unit to convert into biodegradable tableware that doesn’t fill the earth as once used it can be easily converted into a fertilizer. “In some places, we have arranged such setups to do the needful. So, we are among the handful of groups who want the country restaurants to switch to this from the deadly plastic,” he says.
Together for a cause
A regular event be it Earth Hour or planting saplings is part of many oragnisations in the city.
“We have been following Paathya which explains our belief in sustainable growth remains deep-rooted in our minds, aligned with diversity, excellence and positive outcomes. Based on this initiative not just this year but every year, in fact, every day we have been living and making our patrons follow the belief of saying no to plastic and saving the planet,” says Shabahat Hussain, of Taj Mahal hotel.
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