Gurudev’s birthday was in after thirteen days and our target was to make 1,008 paper bags before thatwithin this time limit. We, a team of busy working professionals and two farmer families from in a nearby village, were required expected to take out commit an one hour daily to meet the fulfill this goal. To our amazement, we made a total of 1,600 bags! Giving this batch for free to shopkeepers, we celebrated our feat with a satsang. The year was 2015. Within four years and with the help of four families based in Vazarda, 3 km from my place, we made 280,000 paper bags.
It all started with a DSN program in which the teacher asked us to spread awareness about the perils of single-use plastic. After we spent the evening doing our task, the idea of doing something to minimize plastic use was implanted in my head. Animals die because of plastic. It gets leached into our water table. Something needs to be done. After a few months, around Gurudev’s birthday, with these thoughts, I and a few other volunteers began our initiative to make paper bags.
As we began, we started teaching how to make paper bags to others from nearby and distant villages rs nearby and afar. Over the years, the volunteers have trickled down and so have the number of people making the paper bags. Now, it is just four families of a nearby village who supply these bags. And I’m the permanent volunteer who arrange s for the logistics to and distributes these bags. I buy bags from the suppliers at 40 paise per bag and sell them to shopkeepers at the same rate. I cut costs by giving these families newspapers collected from residents. in my township.
I talk about these bags and the need to cut down plastic use whenever and wherever I can - in schools, shops, at programs and events of The Art of Living. However, the takers of these bags have been few. Once, there were 25,000 unsold paper bags at my home. I somehow sold them for an offer of one free bag on the purchase of one bag. I compensated for the cost by selling a part of our collection of newspapers that are of low quality and are not used for making bags.
Over the years, I have found ways to sell these bags. I incentivize buyers with free paper bags. Eventually, using these bags becomes a habit for them. They find ways to use it: for products that need concealment, light-weight products like coriander, etc. This way, I have found 15 permanent buyers which include departmental stores, pharmacy, and even vegetable vendors. At the beginning of the year, I give a x number of free bags at the purchase of some x bags to them. Though these bags are slightly more expensive than polybags, the buyers continue to buy our bags because they realize their environmental value.
With the inspiration of an faculty of The Art of Living faculty, I started with cloth bags too which I sell to individuals. Porus and small, they are ideal for carrying vegetables. Till now, 5,000 such bags have been sold.
Throughout my journey, I have been lucky to receive support from volunteers of The Art of Living, residents of my township, and shopkeepers. However, I feel that have one complaint against the general masses. General mass pPeople need to be more sensitive towards the environment and make the right choice. As they easily carry their mobile all the time, . Bbut they can’t carry a light eco-friendly option with them. They don’t realize how their actions and inactions are influencing the environment. I hope the ban on single-use plastic this year onward in India on 2nd October 2nd will finally drive people to make better choices.
-Vinay Kothari, Scientific Officer, Nuclear Power Corporation, Gujarat
As told to Vanditaa Kothari
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