THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a move to address environmental concerns posed by the large quantity of floral waste generated daily at Sabarimala temple, the state government and the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) is set to launch a first-of-its-kind initiative to convert the floral rejects into value added projects like agarbattis/incense stick. A Kanpur-based company has come forward expressing interest in giving eco-friendly solutions to address the floral waste menace.
A meeting chaired by the Chief Secretary with the stakeholders has decided to go ahead with the project. Suchitwa Mission executive director U V Jose told TNIE that the project would be implemented immediately. “The Devaswom Board authorities have been asked to provide the land for setting up the recycling unit,” said Jose.
However, finding land in the Sannidhanam or Nilackal for setting up the recycling unit is impossible because the area comes under an ecologically fragile area. “There are hurdles while allocating land for any construction activities as it is a forest area and there are restrictions.
There is no private land and all available land belongs to the forest department or the Devaswom Board. But there are no restrictions for setting up temporary structures. Hence, we are exploring possibilities to set up the recycling unit on a temporary basis for a year,” said an official source.
The Sabarimala temple has been witnessing an influx of tourists and the enormous quantity of floral offerings left by pilgrims each day has been a challenge. Currently, the floral rejects are being buried in the locality. Jose said the government is very particular about implementing the project without any delays.
“There is an industrial estate in Pathanamthitta and we have asked the industries department to provide land there. We will get a response on Monday after their board meeting,” said Jose. The initiative is expected to create employment opportunities also. “The agency is ready to roll out the project immediately after getting the land. They will submit a proposal soon and the scope of employment will be discussed afterwards,” added Jose.