NCC and NHAI ink MoU to reuse plastic waste

New Delhi: The National Cadet Corps (NCC) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to reuse plastic wastes collected by NCC Cadets during Puneet Sagar Abhiyan and other Swachhta activities for the construction of roads by NHAI throughout the country. To promote and create favourable conditions for environmental safety, NCC has initiated a nationwide campaign Puneet Sagar Abhiyan to clean seashores or beaches off the plastic & other wastes along the seashores and increase awareness about the importance of keeping the seashores free from plastic wastes.

The aim of the campaign is to propagate the message of 'Importance of clean seashores/beaches' amongst the local population and future generations. A total of 3,40,000 cadets from 127 Coastal Area NCC Units are participating in the month-long activity. So far, the NCC cadets at different locations have collected plastic wastes amounting to almost six tons from these areas.

The plastic wastes collected is planned to be handed over to NHAI which they can use in road construction. The MoU between NCC and NHAI has been signed and exchanged on 17 December 2021 by Director General of NCC Lt Gen Gurbirpal Singh and NHAI's Chief General Manager Sushil Kumar Mishra.

The National Cadet Corps has also approached IITs and NIITs for their cooperation in recycling and gainful utilisation of the plastic wastes collected. IIT Kharagpur has already agreed to extend its technical expertise in this. The National Cadet Corps is also approaching NGOs who are involved in the recycling of plastic wastes, one of whom, Odisha Yuva Chetana Sangathhan has already agreed to provide assistance.

In addition to physically cleaning the beaches the cadets have also taken up mass awareness campaigns to educate the people regarding the evils and harms of plastic use and the damage plastic is doing to our natural resources. The cadets are also interacting with the public, tourists, local shopkeepers/vendors and fishermen along the coastal areas distributing pamphlets, administering oaths to the target population, performing theme-based Nukkad Nataks & rallies/foot patrols to drive home the message of the importance of clean sea beaches. To date, almost 1.5 lakh cadets at 64 different locations have participated in the Puneet Sagar Abhiyan and have impacted a population of approximately 17 Lakh.

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