HAILAKANDI (Assam) – Independence day cannot get any greener than this. A flag that grows up as a marigold plant! A local women’s club has come up with a unique alternative to the commonly used ‘plastic flag’ that people use to show their patriotism on Independence Day.

 In a bid to make the environment plastic free, including stopping the use of plastic flags, a local club in south Assam’s Hailakandi district is promoting biodegradable flags that grow into plants.

The Inner Wheel Club of Hailakandi is promoting flags made from handmade cotton and embedded with seeds of marigold.

“The flag after being used should be laid on the ground with respect and some soil and water poured on it. In two-three days, the flag will germinate into a plant,” said Sankar Choudhury, vice president of the Rotary Club which is a sister concern of Inner Wheel Club.

It is an initiative taken for ensuring a plastic-free society, the president of the Inner Wheel Club, Kabita Das said. “We see flags made of plastic being used by the people in general on the Republic Day and Independence Day and afterwards they discard them here and there, thereby adding to plastic pollution. So, in honour of our National Tricolour, we have taken this step to make India plastic pollution free.”

Kabita Das urged everyone to lend support to this project to keep the environment free from plastic and to make it green and verdant.

Meanwhile, the Hailakandi district administration headed by Keerthi Jalli has also banned the use of plastic flags and other plastic items across the district which pose a threat to the environment and cause health hazards.

It must be added that the supply of flags is limited, but the overall idea behind the project is welcome.

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Mohit Brahma,from Guwahati calls himself a barefoot journalist.

  development, environment, Independence Day