TimesView While the perils of using plastic may not be immediately obvious, to ignore its long-term consequences will be unwise and hugely detrimental to Planet Earth. It’s heartening to see that citizens are increasingly realising this and launching eco-friendly initiatives to make a difference. The cutlery banks work on the reuse model and can therefore reduce the burden on the city’s landfills. Taken up on a large scale, a green concept like this can make a lasting difference to the environment. Citizens should come up with such innovative ways and be change agents to build a better tomorrow. BENGALURU: Four years ago, Jayanagar resident Hamsa Ravi Kiran searched high and low for someone who could rent out steel tumblers and coffee cups for her sons' thread ceremony. Unable to find anyone, she bought 600 glasses and 200 cups, which she later began renting out to her friends and family for free, so that they could use them for their parties and pujas. The whole idea was to ditch paper or plastic cups and plates.Hansa, a sustainable waste management activist, was driven by a desire to reduce Bengaluru's garbage burden. Today, cutlery banks, like the one started by Hansa, have grown in numbers. While Rent-a-Cutlery and Adamya Chetana, an NGO, started operations in 2016, other NGOs and resident welfare associations (RWAs) have started either pooling in money, or raising funds to set up similar banks in a bid to go truly green."We wanted to reduce the amount of waste reaching landfills by targeting plastic and paper items and hence decided to start a steel bank. While our MLA contributed for the bank, local residents also extended supported. We have been able to raise Rs 2.5 lakh," said Padma Patil, founder of Eco Frenz, a Yelahanka-based NGO. With these funds, Eco Frenz was able to buy 1,000 dinner plates, 1,000 breakfast plates, 2,000 spoons, 2,000 water glasses, 2,000 tea/coffee glasses and 2,000 sambar bowls. "If someone wants to borrow from us, they have to give us a cheque for the amount and their Aadhaar card. Once they return the items, we return the cheque. In case something is damaged or not returned, we deduct a certain amount," explained Padma.Inaugurated less than two weeks ago, the bank has already received several queries and has provided 150 tumblers and 200 bowls for a marathon event, and 600 plates to an apartment complex for Independence Day celebrations.While those borrowing the items need to clean them before returning, Padma says the NGO does another round of cleaning using bio-enzymes and wood ash.A plate bank run by the Tata Nagar RWA, which was inaugurated on August 15, is solely for the 300 families living in the area. "As a RWA, we organise a lot of events and workshops. While we'd use arecanut leaf plates and paper cups, they were quite expensive and not sustainable. A few residents came forward to donate, and now we have about 100 sets, each consisting of a plate, spoon, water tumbler and tea/coffee cup," said Renuka Gopinath, a member of the RWA.Those seeking to rent from the bank are asked for an advance, which is refunded once the items are returned.

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