Posted by Chethana
“Excuse me? “Is there a suggestions or complaint book in this shop??” I ask mechanically for perhaps the millionth time. All the employees stare at me for a second like I am out of a martian saloon and roll their eyes towards the register sitting in the most pathetic corner of the shop almost hidden.
Most of the times I visit a shop in Chennai this is what happens. I am sure you all will want to know what the complaint is – here it goes – ‘Please do not use plastic bags’. Use paper or cotton bags’, but who listens???
I dont even know if the complaint book is checked and I doubt anybody takes the good Samaritan who goes to the higher authorities with this matter seriously.
If it is recycled plastic, it should be printed on the cover (e-g. Amway covers are recycled plastic). Just imagine the seriousness of the situation – I am sure the shop (we are talking about the big marts and departmental shoes here) will have at least 50-75 or even more customers per day. so how many plastic cover are used daily and then per year???
Lets brush up our math which every one of us have blissfully forgotten during these heavenly holidays assuming one customer uses 1 bag. 1 x 50 = 50 x 30 = 1500 (in a month) 1500 x 365 = 5,47,500.
Yes, it amounts to a WHOPPING 5 lakh estimate an year and even more if the shopper has purchased a lot of things and has to take two plastic bags instead of one.
The least we kids can do it (forget the grown ups, if possible tell them but now in this IT and other professions with high competition dominating India it would be amazing if we have a decent conversation with most of them) is take a cloth bag to the shops and avoid large bags for small things.
Here’s another tip – during the exam times, where we spend the last days trying to cram all we can into this small brain of ours, tear up USED month sheets from the calendar and use the backside for working out and writing.
As much as possible use books with recycled paper and less of plastic bags for two things
1) you drive the teacher mad if there is that annoying noise of plastic in class
2) we are dong our 0.01 percent to save the environment. If every one of us contributes 0.01 percent maybe the earth will change slowly for good, change into the one all the environmentalists are praying for, and we do all this for our good and others.
What’s your opinion on this guys? Shouldn’t we arm ourselves with paper / cloth bags when we go shopping next time?
Shouldn’t we go for more non – CFC products and battle it out with the nasty chemicals and other substances depleting our dear environment and at the same time, save ourselves and the next generation?
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Comments:
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Hey, it’s a very good post and very interactive. In my opinion, the shops not only in Chennai but around the world should use paper/jute bags and use the many other methods to save our mother earth. This is the least we can do to show are gratitude for everything she has given to mankind.
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hey thanks
it was plain frustration which drove me to write this article. glad to see such an enthusiastic reply. i am sure if we folllow ur ideas, it would do good for both us and nature.
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Heyy!! You are very much right chethana..I’ve already stopped using plastic bage completely. Even if all of us at YOCee follow this, we will be able to bring in atleast a small change! I’m sure people here will understand the hazards of using plastic and stop using it right now!
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Here is an example from Coimbatore, where school students collected about 1.5 lakh plastic bags in a day!! http://www.hindu.com/2008/06/27/stories/2008062757680100.htm
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Exactly right Poornima, even that 0.000001 change can do India and then the earth better.
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Chethana’s words are true.i only get eco-friendly products but my neighbours laugh @ me 
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Thats true indeed. This critizising puts us all down 
