Nawankot govt school creates plastic bank

Punjab State Council for Science & Technology and the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Government of India, have launched an environment education programme earlier this year, engaging eco-clubs in schools and colleges to impart education and awareness on sustainable solutions to mitigate the impact of climate change. Under this, Government Girls Senior Secondary Smart School, Nawankot, Amritsar, has set a new milestone by creating a plastic bank, a solution to collect, recycle and manage plastic waste generated in school.

The concept will be replicated in various government schools and colleges in the state through their respective eco-clubs. The students led by eco-club in-charge of the school, Shubhkiran, have been working to raise awareness on environment through various activities — from learning to making compost to managing biodiversity and carrying out water audit of school campuses.

Shubhkiran stated that recently, a team of delegates from Waste Netherlands and IK Foundation working for the management of plastic along with FINILOOP (Financial Inclusion and Improved Livelihoods Out of Plastics) team from India visited the Government Girls Senior Secondary Smart School, Nawankot.

“The school also runs a biodiversity and water audit project, a scheme of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, and implemented by the Punjab State Council for Science and Technology (PSCST) and Pushpa Gujral Science City. Under this, we conduct an assessment of water wastage in school and check it through sustainable solutions. Now, with the plastic bank, we hope to check the usage of single-use plastic and its disposal through recycling,” said school principal Navdeep Gill. The water audit is done in each school every three months and a report is sent to the Education Department.

Similarly, 220 government senior secondary schools (10 in each district) in the state now have water, biodiversity and hygiene clubs that improve sanitation and hygiene practices and help in the conservation of natural resources. The School of Eminence, Mall road, also runs an education programme for students, teaching them sustainable garbage disposal methods through vermi-composting and mulching.