The ban on the use of plastic will come into force on the premises of Sri Veera Venkata Satyanarayana Swamy Vari Devasthanam temple at Annavaram in Kakinada district, with effect from August 15.
The ban scheduled to come into force on July 1 was postponed as a search for an alternative to plastic was not over by then. Initially, the temple authorities decided to use ‘glass bottle’ on the lines of Tirumala temple but the plan was dropped later.
“The plastic ban will come into force on the temple premises with effect from August 15. Water bottles made of corn starch will replace plastic bottles,” temple Executive Officer S.S. Chandrasekhar Azad told The Hindu on August 14 (Monday).
The corn-starch bottle will be supplied by Hyderabad-based Bioelite firm. “We have sent the samples of the corn-starch bottles to Hyderabad-based Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology (CIPET) which has certified that the product does not come under plastic category,” said Mr. Azad.
At present, the temple has a capacity of supplying 11,000 litre purified water per day through its 11 RO plants through which the devotees get the water free of cost. However, the devotees should collect water only in the bio-compostable bottle, which would also be sold in the stores on the temple premises.
“By July, we had only five RO plants and the number has gone up to 11 now. Each plant can supply a maximum of 1,000 litre water per day, said Mr. Azad, adding that all the stores nearby have been instructed not to use plastic water bottles.
