By Matters India Reporter
Sonada, Feb 8, 2020: An NGO working for clean environment in the Darjeeling Hills has launched its first “zero waste store.”
The store, located at 8th Mile Stream between Gorabari and Chattakpur villages, specializes in locally prepared snacks which are not packaged in plastic bags.
“We serve them fresh, without the plastic packages,” said CEO of the Take It Easy Easy Does It (TIEEDI) NGO host Utsov Pradhan after the store launch on February 7.
“As social entrepreneurs we have been working on solutions that solve the waste management crisis in our hills and this store is a step towards that goal. Through our Zero Waste store we will link the consumer demand for everyday goods to the local self-help groups, artists, craftsmen, and entrepreneurs,” he added.
Pradhan explained the concept saying, “Unlike the plastic packaging that comes from large corporations in large factories in a faraway land, we will package the goods sustainably.”
He added, “We will also be promoting the works of local weavers, artisans and craftsmen who work on sustainable products.”
The store has a restaurant that caters to the taste buds of the customers by promoting food produced by organic farmers and by highlighting the benefits of the indigenous super foods.
Among the NGOs from the hills present at the event included Scavengers, a group consisting of young people, mostly students below 21 years from Darjeeling, as well as Mukh Bandh, Kaam Suru (Shut Up, Start Working) another youth based NGO from Darjeeling, as well as WWF Zero Waste Himalaya from Darjeeling, as well as NGOs from Kalimpong and Gangtok (Sikkim).
TieEdi’s ‘Save 8 Mile Khola’ is a crusade by the villagers living in and around the 8 Mile, one of the major living rivers in Darjeeling, to save their precious resource – 8 Mile rivulet started in 2016.