THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Whenever you use and throw a ballpoint pen, do you realise that these millions of small instruments made of plastic when thrown add to the degradation of the environment?
Unlike most of us, Sivamani is someone who believes that it is everyone’s duty to reduce plastic waste. He has been working with differently-abled people to promote seed pens or paper pens, which are a great alternative to plastic ballpoint pens.
This not only helps in addressing the issue of plastic menace, but the seeds will also grow into trees. “It has been one and a half years since I am training differently-abled people to make seed pens. These pens are eco-friendly and contain seeds of different varieties of plants and can be grown into trees. Once a pen has been used, it can be planted into the soil. The seed will sprout from the bottom of the pen and the paper also gets dissolved in the soil without affecting the environment,” says Sivamani, who works with the Handicrops society.
He also added that even if someone loses the pen, they have chances of sprouting. Besides spreading the importance of protecting the environment, Sivamani has also been able to train more than 100 differently-abled people in making umbrellas, bags, paper pens, and seed pens, enabling them to earn a livelihood of their own. Sivamani shares, “Usually I provide the differently-abled people with the materials such as scrap papers and the refill to make the seed pens. Based on the order, the materials are provided to the people and the products are collected once it’s completed.”
The pen carries seeds of chilly, Agasthya tree, which holds special importance in the field of Ayurveda for its medicinal properties and is said to be useful in treating cancer. Through this venture, they have been able to bring down the usage of plastic per pen to one-fifth of a normal ballpoint pen.
Sivamani has conducted several camps for the differently-abled across the state and has been giving training in seed pen making to them. For people, who cannot make it to the camps, Sivamani travels to their homes in different parts of the state and provides training. He says, “Differently-abled people are the most neglected lot who do not have any means of livelihood. I want to impart this skill to as many people as possible so that they become independent.” Sivamani also shared that one of the persons whom he gave training was able to sell seed pens worth Rs 1 lakh.