Students urged to engage actively in plastic eradication

Madurai: Students should play an important role in the eradication of plastics by creating awareness, corporation commissioner Aneesh Sekhar said on Thursday.

He was speaking after inaugurating a plastic awareness rally by the Madurai Corporation conducted for students of TVS Matriculation Higher Secondary School on Thursday. “The corporation is exploring ways in which effective segregation and recycling of dry and wet waste could be done,” he said.

With the Tamil Nadu government having decided to ban plastics made of less than 50 microns from January 1, 2019, efforts are being taken to create awareness on the same among the public.

Plastics do not get degraded when it enters soil, due to which it prevents the percolation of water into the soil hindering rain water from recharging the groundwater levels. It is important that plastics are removed from the environment to enable rainwater to be harvested and stored properly.

It is also important that a plastic-free world is created to protect the environment, he said. Students should encourage people to use cloth bags and carry utensils to shops. “Also, we could enhance the green coverage of our city by growing more trees, something that each student should strive to do,” he added.

Director of the school, R Srinivasan, deputy director Maithili Sundarajan, principal, Aruna Kumari among others were present at the rally.