Khadi makes green statement at PM Modi’s swearing-in

JAIPUR: Humble Khadi has added a new occasion to its appeal. This time it chose its ‘patron’s’ historic day, as handmade paper carry bags made from waste plastic caught the eyeballs of the power-packed gathering at Rashtrapati Bhawan on Thursday evening.
At Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony, the bags having water bottles inside occupied their pride of their place, in the company of every dignitary.
The bags were supplied from KVIC’s Kumarappa National Handmade Paper Institute (KNHPI) at Jaipur that has experimented with the green initiative. The President himself had made the selection, as per KVIC (Khadi and Village Industries Commission) and had ordered 7,000 bags for the occasion.
According to KVIC chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena, the paper bags were made under REPLAN (REducing PLAstic in Nature) project and its manufacturing process involved waste plastic being collected, cleaned, chopped, beaten and given chemical treatment for softness.
After that, it was mixed with paper raw material, that is, cotton rags pulp in a ratio of 80% (pulp) and 20% (plastic waste) and finally sheets were made from it, he explained.
“It was like Khadi India was saluting its patron from all angles at that event. If Khadi’s growth in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first term is any indication, we are all set to add many more feathers in Khadi's cap in the coming days,” said Saxena in a statement.
KNHPI has supplied over seven lakh handmade paper bags and consumed over 17 metric tonnes of plastic waste in its manufacturing, the statement said.
Now, Khadi plans to set up four such units, one each at Delhi, Patna, Nashik and Chennai. The present unit at Jaipur would be upgraded very soon, added Saxena.