Rishikesh, Apr 29 (PTI) The Rishikesh Ganga Anti-Plastic Expo kicked off in Parmarth Niketan Ashram here on Saturday, with Rishikesh Mayor Anita Mamgai describing the single use plastic ban as a visionary decision.
Applauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision behind the decision, she called on participants to take personal responsibility for eliminating plastic pollution in the Ganga.
“The Single Use Plastic Ban was a visionary step and to implement it, we must come together to reduce plastic from every aspect of our lives,” she said.
Being organised by the Centre for Global Affairs & Public Policy (CGAPP), the two-day expo will feature startups and solution providers working on plastic alternatives, river cleaning and waste management.
It also includes an exhibition of solution providers/startups working on plastic waste issues on the banks of the Ganga at Parmarth Niketan Ashram, which will continue till 30 April.
Indian and foreign startups and civil society organisations like Waste Warriors, Switcheko, Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board, River Recycle, Recykal, Amwoodo, Plastic Fische, Code Efforts and Nirmalya are part of the exhibition.
Mamgai was the chief guest at the inaugural session, which featured discussions on the issue of plastic waste in the Ganga.
Following her address, she interacted with women researchers and signed the banner, printed by Switcheko on sustainable materials, to participate in the CGAPP outreach programme on eliminating plastic waste.
The expo is part of the solution component of CGAPP’s project on “Tackling Plastic Pollution in the Ganga Basin”.
The project will also feature research in 12 locations in India and Bangladesh by an all-women team, who will collect water and sediment samples to estimate plastic pollution in the Ganga.
The team will travel by boat from Prayagraj to Varanasi and conduct outreach programmes with youth, local communities, and other stakeholders. It will conclude in Dhaka, Bangladesh, with a summit at the end of the year.
The session started with a musical performance by Sukrit Sen, who also explained how music can be a means to connect with water systems.
The inauguration also featured a session from Sara Ahmed, the founder of the Living Waters Museum, which is a virtual museum engaging youth in visualising water heritage and re-imagining sustainable, inclusive and equitable water futures.
She said that the museum offers people a new way to look at water systems and helps preserve the traditional ties to these systems.