Mysuru: With an initial push and encouragement from his mother, four-year-old boy Ishan Chetan is going all out in his efforts against the use of plastic bags and promoting the use of cloth and paper bags among the shopkeepers across Mysuru city. Ishan, who is very fond of animals, birds and cares a lot for the environment, aims to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and request him to ban plastics across the country.
In a span of just one month, he has visited more than 110 shops and requested the keepers to use cloth or paper bags instead of polythene bags. Chetan, son of Shruthi Chetan, Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, has been campaigning against banned plastic for the past nearly one month. He has visited as many as 110 shops on Teresian College Road, Dr. Rajkumar Road, Sardar Vallabhai Patel Nagar and in Alanahalli, Siddartha Layout, Kuvempunagar, Hebbal, Metagalli, Alanahalli and just a day ago in KRS, to create awareness against the harmful effects of using plastics. After explaining the adverse effects of banned plastics, he hands over a couple of paper bags to the shopkeepers. Initially, Chetan was sensitised by his mother and he also gained information through social media.
Speaking to Newskarnataka, Shruthi Chetan said, “As I was having a tab with me, he too wanted to use the same. Initially, I used to show him the achievements of small kids, songs, shlokas, rhymes, birds and animals. Hence to make productive use of the tab, when he was a just two-and-half-year-old, I also started teaching him about environmental conservation and used to take him to Karigatta where environmentalist Ramesh used to take good care of plants. After seeing people watering plants, Chetan too started doing the same. At home, he used to spend more time with street dogs and cultivated love for animals. At home, we were not wasting water. He too gradually picked up the same and used to tell everyone not to waste water unnecessarily. Even if somebody at home was found wasting water, he used to tell them not to do that. As he is very fond of environment and its conservation, I also showed him a video where a cow died due to eating of plastics. Immediately, he asked me how we can eradicate plastic. I told him since we get plastic from the shop, if shopkeepers stop giving things in plastic bags it could be minimised. He had also asked me what is the alternative. I told him the cloth and paper bags are the only alternatives to plastics. He took money from his piggy box, bought few paper bags and started visiting shops requesting the keepers not to use plastics. During his visit to these shops, there were also a couple of incidents where some of the insensitive shop owners discouraged the child, but Chetan didn’t get disappointed and continued his awareness on the use of paper bags. Chetan, after finishing his kick-boxing and music classes, visits three to four shops every day, hands over paper bags to their keepers and requests them not to use plastic bags. Chetan maintains a record of his visits to shops. He keeps the register and paper bags with him and whenever he finds free time, he creates awareness by visiting the shops.”
Shruthi said her child’s activities were more important for her than anything else and wants him to develop healthy habits.
She also mentioned that the initiative is giving education to him at a very young age. “When I shared this initiative in my college friends’ group, they got motivated, inspired others and stopped using plastics in their apartments which have 34 houses. They have also started to create awareness in their neighbouring places”, added Shruthi.
Chetan says, “Plastic is harmful to animals and the environment will be polluted due to the use of plastic. The use of plastic may lead to various health problems. Hence I have taken up this campaign.”
Radha, Deputy Director, Women and Child Welfare Department, too lauded the initiative of this child. “At this young age, it’s really surprising to know that the boy is involved in such an awareness programme. He is really an inspiration for many people.”
