Give plastic, take gold: A novel concept turns JK village plastic-free

Sadiwara, a far-flung village Panchayat in Hiller Shahabad block of South Kashmir’s Anantnag district, has come up with the idea of giving a gold coin for collecting plastic waste to save the environment. The village Panchayat has launched a one-of-a-kind quest to save the environment. The village chief has launched a campaign dubbed “Give Plastic, Take Gold.”
Under the plan, if someone donates 20 quintals of plastic waste, the Panchayat will give him a gold coin.

Farooq Ahmad Ganai, a lawyer by trade and Sarpanch of the village Sadiwara, has become an inspiration to everyone in the Kashmir Valley. Within 15 days of the campaign’s launch, the entire village had been proclaimed plastic-free.
The campaign has garnered widespread acclaim and support, and it has even been adopted by other panchayats.

Advocate Farooq Ahmad Ganai stated, “I started a slogan in my village to give polythene in exchange for a reward. I took charge of cleaning the rivers and streams. Everyone in the community now helps us clear the sites.”
The village, which had heaps of plastic thrown on the roads and streets, is now totally clean, and all gathered plastic is given to Panchayat members. This community is a model for all other villages, and the government is attempting to replicate the same concept in every village throughout the Union territory.

“Locals of all age groups showed interest when the Panchayat asked them to collect plastic waste from garbage dumps, rivers, and roads,” said Shakeel Wani, head of Sadiwara Youth Club.
Assistant Commissioner Development Anantnag, Riyaz Ahmad said,” Under Swach Bharat Abhiyan 2 we have to make our village’s polythene and garbage-free and in this regard, Sadiwara Panchayat along with District administration have started this model, this is not government scheme so that people gets motivated to clean their villages.”