The iconic Mysuru Palace, a destination in the must-see list of every tourist visiting the city of palaces, will soon become ‘plastic-free’. It will be the second tourist destination after the Mysuru zoo to shun plastic with the Mysuru District Administration, the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC), and the Mysuru Palace Board joining hands to make it possible.
As thousands of tourists visit the palace daily, generating large amounts of plastic waste, this would often result in littering of plastic bottles. While single-use plastic is banned and cannot be carried inside the palace, water bottles are allowed but the visitors need to deposit a sum and get the money back after returning the used bottle after the visit.
“This concept has worked really well at the Mysuru zoo. Visitors deposit a sum of ₹20 per bottle to carry inside the zoo. After the visit, they would get back the money in return for the bottle. The received bottles go for recycling. This ends plastic pollution. The same model is being adopted at the Mysuru Palace as this will bring a sense of responsibility among the visitors and make them conscious,” said MCC Health Officer D. G. Nagaraj.
He told The Hindu, “The matter was discussed with the deputy commissioner, Mysuru who has agreed to the idea. As the palace has only one entry and exit, it becomes a lot easier like in the zoo for screening. The no-plastic rule will come into effect soon. This will surely prevent littering of plastic bottles inside the premises.”
Dr. Nagaraj said segregation of waste – dry waste and wet waste at source in large gatherings or events –has been made mandatory. “If the rule was not complied with, the MCC will refuse accepting the waste for disposal. This will make the users switch to segregation to ensure disposal.”
“A meeting of wedding halls’ association members will be convened soon to convey the MCC’s guidelines and seek their support and cooperation. The MCC was advocating green initiatives with no use of plastic sheets or bottles at the weddings. If the bottles are used, they need to be segregated separately and handed over to the MCC. They cannot be mixed with the wet waste,” the officer said.
The recent conference of advocates in Mysuru that attracted participation of thousands of delegates from across the State. The MCC specially took care so that littering was avoided and the waste disposal was properly handled with the support of the people taking the catering contract, he said.
“We ended up collecting a whopping 1,000 kg of plastic bottles. Each kg of bottle was sold at ₹15 and the proceeds were given to the pourakarmikas,” he said.
Dr. Nagaraj said the hotels and restaurants have also been directed for segregation at source.
The MCC had constituted a dedicated team to facilitate the weddings and other events going the ‘green’ way. The concept gained popularity with the people volunteering to take the “green” way to tie the knot. Whoever conducts the green wedding, shunning plastic use, and reducing bulk waste generation, is awarded with a ‘Green Wedding Certificate’, certifying their “environment-friendly” initiative, which is handed over to the newly-married couple acknowledging their concern.
