Thiruvananthapuram: The organising committee of the 56th State school arts festival has decided to make all the 20 venues for the festival ‘zero-waste’ areas on the lines of the National Games held last year, publicity committee convener K. Buhari has said.
An initiative of the Suchitwa Mission, the green protocol is aimed at restricting the use of disposables, particularly plastics, at the venues. This was decided at a meeting of the organisers in which Suchitwa Mission executive director K. Vasuki was present.
Only recyclable materials will be used at the venues.
Boiled water will be provided. Visitors will be screened at the entrances, and plastic products such as bottles and covers will not be allowed in. Provision will be made to deposit these at the entrance.
The services of volunteers will be roped in for initiative.
Pandals will be set up at the venues at a cost of Rs.24 lakh. The Putharikandam grounds will have a pandal with a traditional design.
A 4,000 sq ft pandal for cooking food for the participants and a dining hall that can accommodate 3,000 children will come up at the Police Training Grounds. The quotation for the sound system has gone to a Kollam team. Helming the festival kitchen will be Pazhayidam Mohanan Namboodiri.
The budget for the kitchen is estimated at Rs.25 lakh. Finding sponsors for the food served will help limit the expenditure, the organisers say. There are plans to get students in the district to contribute one coconut to the festival kitchen.
The organisers have sought that unaided schools be roped in to accommodate the thousands of participants who will reach the city for the festival.
The organisers are also on the lookout for sponsors to deck up the city for the festival. Arches and banners will be put up across the city, and ‘gates’ will come up at the venues.
