Paper bags distributed to shop keepers

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The shop keepers and vendors at Nalanchira were pleasantly surprised the other day when students of Mar Theophilus Training College came distributing paper bags, as a substitute for the non-biodegradable plastic carry bags. The training in paper bag-making was initiated by the teacher trainees of Mar Theophilus Training College in connection with the National Environment Awareness Campaign-2012 (NEAC), a joint initiative of WWF-India and Centre for Environment and Development supported by Ministry of Environment and Forests. As many as 1,500 paper bags in different sizes were made and distributed to the local shops, as part of the programme. The trainers were Teena and Sabeena from Zero Waste Centre, Kovalam. They imparted training to around 150 teacher trainees to design and make better paper bags. Following the hands-on training, each participant made 10 paper bags and the entire lot of bags was distributed to shops in and around Nalanchira free of cost as part of the campaign.  To make the programme more interesting for the participants, competitions were also conducted on best design, maximum number of designs and maximum number of paper bags made in 30 minutes’ duration. The campaign was inaugurated by Suchitwa Mission executive director George Chakkachery. WWF -India state director Renjan Mathew Varghese presided over the function.