It is the season of challenges. With Indians gearing up with #fitnesschallenge for #humFitTohIndiaFit, netizens are also keeping a close watch on the scene of the environmental front. Surprisingly it is encouraging to see challenges like #NoStrawChallengeByShanvi.

This hashtag was created by Kannada actor Shanvi Srivastava. According to news and social media posts, Shanvi was challenged by a friend to drink directly from a coconut. The starlet confesses to being clumsy on the first few attempts spilling the water all over her and finally managing to drink it like a pro eventually. Upon being successful, Shanvi decided to turn this fun game into a challenge to protect the environment. She uploaded a video of herself drinking directly from a coconut and asked others to follow suit. She was quoted saying the green cause is close to her heart and doesn’t take it lightly when she sees people littering the streets with plastic bottles.

First leap

For World Environment Day, ITC Kakatiya has pledged to beat plastic pollution. To do so, they have removed plastic straws from all its restaurants and introduced bio-degradable straws which are available for guests on demand. Green consciousness doesn’t end here. Plastic water bottles from the restaurant are being replaced with glass bottles called ‘ŚūnyaAqua’. “Sunya Aqua is zero-mile water crafted with a sophisticated in-house water purification system which includes ultra filtration through (sand, carbon, iron and fluoride), Reverse Osmosis (RO System), chemical disinfection, deionization and UV disinfection that removes the contaminants. The treated water passes through an Ozonator and subsequently a pH correction meter, to stabilize the pH,” says Virender Razdan. According to a report published by an environmental study by Strawless Ocean, “annually an estimated 71 % of seabirds and 30 % of turtles have been found to have plastic in their stomach.” Another report by the Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation adds that “seabirds can ingest as much as 8 % of their body weight in plastic, which for humans is equivalent to the average woman having the weight of two babies in her stomach.”

Today, plastic straws are one of the top ten items causing water pollution around globe. The only answer is to switch to straws made of paper, bamboo, steel and even glass.

Hyderabad might be waking up late to the news of paper straws and reusable steel straws. But the awareness is an encouraging one with other five star properties too are following suit.

Simple steps

Taking care of the environment and nurturing in small and simple steps will go a long way in protecting it. Several stand-alone eateries in the city who still serve commercially treated drinking water by the bottle say the bottles are collected and sent to be recycled. “At my café, I stock the bottles and GHMC collection team takes it away. I am also planning to set up a water treatment plant for drinking water. Empty wine bottles can be cleaned and served water on every table,” says Nishant Sinha of The Roastery. Nishant is planning to remove plastic straws from his cafe and is in the process of making use of something more sustainable, like steel straws.

In this age of exclusivity, one can make a fashion statement by picking the straw of your choice. ‘Reduce, reuse and recycle’ are the tips to go pro with nature. So let’s sip responsibly and fashionably.