His Holiness Swasthi Sri Charukeerthi Bhattaraka Swamiji on Thursday inaugurating Project Kasavara, a solid waste management programme, at Shravanabelagola. (l to r)Shravanabelagola Gram Panchayat President S B Sharatkumar and ISRO Environmental Scientist V Jagannath are also seen in the picture.
His Holiness Swasthi Sri Charukeerthi Bhattaraka Swamiji on Thursday inaugurating Project Kasavara, a solid waste management programme, at Shravanabelagola. (l to r)Shravanabelagola Gram Panchayat President S B Sharatkumar and ISRO Environmental Scientist V Jagannath are also seen in the picture.
His Holiness Swasthi Sri Charukeerthi Bhattaraka Swamiji on Thursday inaugurating Project Kasavara, a solid waste management programme, at Shravanabelagola. (l to r)Shravanabelagola Gram Panchayat President S B Sharatkumar and ISRO Environmental Scientist V Jagannath are also seen in the picture.

Shravanabelagola, January 12, 2006: Swasthishri Charukeerthi Bhattaraka Swamiji, pontiff of the Shravanabelagola Digambara Jain Mutt, on Thursday launched ‘Project Kasa-Vara’, a programme aimed at managing the solid waste at Shravanabelagola on the occasion of Mahamasthakabhisheka Celebrations.
The uniqueness of the project is attempting to enforce abuse free plastic use in the whole event and banning of Plastic at the two hills. The project is implemented by involving local stakeholders such as schools, colleges and Stree- Shaktis.
The programme aims at turning the nearly1200 tones of solid waste, expected to be generated during the month long celebrations beginning January 22 by the nearly 30 to 40 lakh pilgrims and tourists all set to converge on this pilgrim township, into organic fertilizer, and also encourage shunning the use of plastic during the festivities, by leverging the local human resources at Shravanabelagola.
The Rs.30 lakh project aims at keeping Shravanabelagola clean and beautiful throughout the celebrations by encouraging the local community to participate in the collection and processing of the solid waste generated during the celeberations as an income generation opportunity. This initiative, aimed at involving all segments including business community, is accompanied side by side with a publicity campaign.
Green and white garbage bins will be set up all over the town as a part of this novel initiative, crucial for preventing outbreak of epidemics and other health hazards, apart from protecting the environment during the celebrations. While the white bins would be meant for putting paper, biscuit covers, plastics, bottles and such others imperishables, the green bins, would gather the organic wastes such as leftovers of meals, vegetable and fruit wastes etc, suitable for recycling.
Swasthishri Charukeerthi Bhattaraka Swamiji, launching the programme at a two-day orientation camp for the local residents, termed Project Kasa-Vara as a crucial programme, to keep Shravanabelagola clean, and mosquito and disease free, after the total sanitization initiative launched earlier.
The Karnataka Rajya Vignana Parishat (KRVP) is providing technical support with the assistance of Professional expertise of CST, IISc. & CED, ISRO. Chennarayapatna Taluk Panchayat and the Shravanabelagola Digambar Jain Mutt are implementing Project Kasa-Vara jointly. KRVP Secretary Dr. Niranjan Aradhya, IISc Scientist Dr. H N Chanakya, ISRO’s Environmental Scientist V Jagannath, KRVP Project Scientist Mahesh chandra, Chennarayapatna Taluk Panchayat CEO were present. – Jain Heritage Centres News Service (JHCNS)