Mangaluru/Qatar: Ashwath Hegde, a native of Mangalore and now an NRI entrepreneur from Qatar in his 20s has made it to the “Forbes India 30” list for his unique biodegradable alternative to plastic bags. Hegde, hailing from Belthangady is the first person from the state to make it to the Forbes India list.
Hegde’s ambitious plans of introducing “EnviGreen” carry bags made from vegetable waste and vegetable oil derivatives is finally bearing fruits. The bags which decompose naturally in 60-180 days have been certified as plastic free by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board and the global certification and testing firm TÜV SÜD South Asia.
The plastic carry bags though banned are still being used and it poses serious environmental hazards. Hegde(24) decided to introduce these carry bags which are affordable, eco-friendly and will cause no harm even if one gulps it down by mistake. He was inspired after Mangaluru City Corporation banned plastic bags in 2012. In search of substitutes, Hegde personally funded a team of 10 researchers in Europe to develop biodegradable carry bags. Meanwhile, he shifted base to Qatar where he set up his Green Corporation.
The hard work and four years of research became successful in 2016 when the company launched its first biodegradable shopping bag in Qatar on February 26—the country’s National Environment Day.
The two-day campaign to popularise the product in West Asia caught the attention of India’s then minister of state for environment and forests, Prakash Javadekar, who encouraged Hegde to set up a plant in India under the central government’s Make in India initiative.
The invitation led to EnviGreen Biotech India Pvt Ltd in Bengaluru last year. “India’s first plastic-free biodegradable bags are set to roll out from our Bengaluru factory in February 2017 under the brand name EnviGreen,” says Hegde, CEO of the company, that has inked deals to supply its eco-friendly bags to convenience store chain Reliance Fresh, etailer Naaptol and online grocery store Bigbasket, among others.
Rudra Narasimha Rao, director, industrial energy efficiency, at The Energy and Resources Institute, a think tank dedicated to sustainable development that has tested the EnviGreen bags, calls them “one of the solutions to plastic waste”. “If we create awareness on plastic pollution, products like these will find acceptance.”
Inputs from Forbes India
