Plastic use banned at Bangla Sahib Gurudwara
NEW DELHI: Joining the fight against plastic waste, authorities at the Bangla Sahib Gurudwara have banned use of all types of plastic items within the shrine complex.
The decision has been taken as part of programmes to commemorate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, the president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), said.
The biggest heritage Sikh shrine, situated in the heart of the national Capital, has banned disposable plates, glasses, spoons, polystyrene (thermocol) cup-plates and other single-use plastics, and switched to steel utensils for serving water and ‘langar’ (community meal) to devotees, Sirsa said.
“On an average, around 5,000 polybags and polystyrene cupplates were used every day, to distribute prasad, fruits and other items to devotees. Now, these have been replaced with eco-friendly jute bags and donapattal (leaf bowls and plates) since October 2,” he said.
The DSGMC has set up a recycling plant, which is capable of handling two tonnes of flower and ‘langar’ waste, and dry leaves on a daily basis. The organic waste is converted into manure and vermicompost.
The fully automatic plant has been commissioned on an experimental basis, at present, to experiment with the zero-waste model and will be commissioned on a full scale this month, Sirsa said. The committee has also completely shifted to clean piped natural gas for preparing ‘langar’ for around 35,000 people daily and has further, completely banned the use of wood and charcoal, he said.