K. Ramalingam, a resident of Greenways Road, Raja Annamalaipuram, wears many hats. He irons clothes from a pushcart on First Main Road, R.A. Puram, works as a reporter for a monthly magazine Reporter Vision , and engaged in environmental activism.
Drawing attention to the harm that can result from extreme reliance on plastic products, Ramalingam urges people to make a start by doing away with plastic covers and using cloth and paper bags.
“S. Murugan, Commissioner, Zone 9, Greater Chennai Corporation, inspired me to do this. Over the last two years, I have travelled extensively across the State, and conducted campaigns to wean residents off plastics. There has been a good response from the public. It is good to note that the State government will ban plastics from January 2019,” he says.
In addition, he organising green drives, planting trees in Adyar, Kottivakkam, Thiruvanmiyur, and Palavakkam.
Ramalingam has put up advisory boards about best green practices in many places, including R. A. Puram and Nageshwara Rao Park, Luz Corner.
“In the last two years, I have planted more than 90 native tree saplings in Adyar, Kottivakkam, Thiruvanmiyur, and Palavakkam. The areas lost huge number of trees to cyclone Vardah in 2016. I also closely work with the residents and ensure that the saplings are nurtured,” says Ramalingam.
In recent times, Raja Annamalai Puram Residents’ Association (RAPRA) has been taking sustained efforts to increase the green cover in the locality. Around the tree guards of the newly-planted saplings in R.A. Puram, a few members of the public had been throwing garbage.
To put an end to this, with the support of Dr. R. Chandrasekaran, founder, RAPRA, I hung advisory boards in Tamil. Following this, people stopped throwing garbage. In the next phase of this exercise, boards will be hung on the guards on Third Main Road and Seventh Main Road, he adds.
