IIT Indore's Swaaha & 350 local volunteers to conduct the Amarnath Yatra Cleaning Drive

The Jammu and Kashmir government has joined hands with IIT Indore’s ‘Swaha’ startup to initiate an effective garbage cleaning drive during the revered Amarnath Yatra. The holy 43 day trip was reportedly green flagged on June 30, marking its first run since the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. As per reports, the Yatra though sacred has generated a scare among the experts to be produce about one thousand tonnes of waste during its course. As such, around 350 locals from Indore have been reoped to voluntarily relaise this cleanliness mission.

The Government of J&K expects an influx of 8 Lakh pilgrims and has already said no to no-single-use plastic and disposable materials in the Amarnath Yatra as a precaution. What Swaaha aims to do is called a Zero Landfill Event, which takes it a step further. Here, all the waste generated will be recycled instead of being conventionally buried underground. Notably, the waste recycled will be segregated and used to make organic fertiliser, which will be offered to the travellers as presents.

The Swaha volunteers have already started setting up waste management machines and equipment. Volunteers will assume various stations and responsibilities across the route of the Yatra and collect the waste generated from base camps, langars, bhandaras, and other activities. The team of Swaha and their volunteers will be deployed till the end of the Yatra, on August 11.

The IIT Swaaha startup is working on waste management strategies in nine cities and has taken up the task of installing solar concentrators in a bid to make the Yatra smoke accessible. These concentrators are an effective setup for cooking and heating without the use of traditional fuels and energy, reducing the rate of pollution by a remarkable notch.