Vegetable Market In Indore Says No To Plastic; Dustbins Placed Outside Shops

Indore: In an environment-friendly move, shopkeepers and vendors at the vegetable market in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, have stopped the use of polythene bags, while dustbins have been placed outside establishments to keep the vicinity clean. Indore has bagged the title of the cleanest city in India six times in a row and is eyeing to retain its position in 2023 as well. The cleanliness move launched two months ago has nearly discouraged the use of plastic bags at the market under Rajkumar Bridge, where dustbins have been placed neatly in front of shops.

Aditya Verma, a shopkeeper on Sunday (August 10) told PTI,

We ask customers to come to our shops with bags. If a customer does not have a bag, we give them vegetables in cloth bags, which are a costlier alternative.

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The environment-friendly move introduced two months ago has virtually paid off.

Other shopkeepers said that earlier customers would ask for plastic bags, but after the ban on single-use plastic in the city, their habits have changed drastically.

Deepika (25), who works with a private company in the city told PTI,

I have come to the vegetable market carrying my bag because plastic bags harm the environment and take a lot of time to decompose. Animals that eat these bags contract life-threatening diseases.

According to the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC), the wet waste generated from the city’s vegetable markets is sent to the “Gobar-Dhan” plant being run on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis on 15 acres at the Devguradia trenching ground.

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There the waste is turned into bio-CNG, they said.

According to the state government, “Gobar-Dhan” was Asia’s largest plant for making bio-CNG from wet waste generated from urban areas.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the plant, built for Rs 150 crore, on February 19, 2022.

The city’s continued successful run in cleanliness and sanitation hinges on efficiently implementing the “3Rs” (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) formula of waste management, they said.

Also Read: In A First, Indore Gets Extended Producers Responsibility Credit By Recycling Single-Use Plastic

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – theLGBTQ population,indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the currentCOVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water,SanitationandHygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fightmalnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health,adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues likeair pollution,waste management,plastic ban,manual scavengingand sanitation workers andmenstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India wheretoiletsare used andopen defecation free (ODF)status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched byPrime Minister Narendra Modiin 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.