Recently, a video of a novel exercise to cut down plastics by Tamil Nadu Forest department went viral. It shows pilgrims visiting Velliangiri Hills in the Western Ghats, about 40 kilometres from Coimbatore, tag their plastic bottles with a green sticker. Then, they continue to pay a refundable deposit of ₹20 at Poondi, the foothills, before beginning their ascent over the seven hills that summits at a Shiva temple. While the team tagged close to two lakh bottles, over 1.66 lakh water bottles were brought back by the pilgrims, which is about 85%. A simple exercise, this prevented 14 tonnes of plastic waste from entering the reserve forest, a thriving bio-diversity hotspot located at an altitude of 1850 metres above mean sea level. Congratulatory messages have been pouring in for the team, including a tweet by Supriya Sahu, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Forests. She wrote, “In a fantastic exercise Team #TNForest Coimbatore implemented an initiative to prevent littering of disposable water bottles by pilgrims visiting Velliangiri Hills....”
“It’s a success model that can be replicated across pilgrim sites in India where there is a common entry point for everyone,” says N Jayaraj, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Coimbatore adding that the feedback from the public has been encouraging. “Over the years, as the inflow of tourists has shot up, it’s our responsibility to protect the ecosystem. Before opening the Velliangiri Hills for pilgrims, forest officials, NGOs and volunteers brainstormed for ideas on cutting down plastics and we went ahead with tagging plastic bottles. The exercise ensured that every individual did their bit towards conservation.”
