India is a country that values many of its cultures and traditions even after thousands of years. Nature’s gifts like trees, rivers, and flowers are a huge part of the cultural practices. Rivers are worshipped due to religious beliefs and flowers are an integral part of all the ceremonies and rituals. But, in recent years, due to increased idol immersion and many other religious practices, have led to an increase in the pollution levels of the Ganges.
It is easy for the citizens to blame factories, sewers, and manufacturing plants for the pollution in the water bodies as they usually discharge the waste in them. But do we analyze and realize that we are contributing to it as well? The religious practices and other daily rituals like bathing, washing clothes, and even defecating in the water bodies are equally responsible.
But we do see a ray of hope for the Ganges which holds so much importance to people that it is even seen as a way of living. A startup called Phool is making incense sticks from the waste flowers used in temples and mosques. Due to their efforts, flower pollution has reduced due to the large number of flowers being recycled.
Flower Pollution
The flowers used in various religious ceremonies in the temples and mosques are loaded with pesticides and insecticides which pollute the water in which they are immersed. These chemicals also decrease the level of dissolved oxygen in the water which threatens marine life. Toxic Arsenic, Lead, and Cadmium make the water highly poisonous and can cause cholera, hepatitis, and severe diarrhea upon consumption. Consuming polluted water is a huge cause of child mortality across India and Bangladesh.
The Vision Behind Phool.co
Phool was formerly known as HelpUsGreen. Ankit Agrawal is the founder and CEO of this Kanpur-based startup which is dedicated to clean Ganga and strives towards sustainability. He was watching people bathe in the river with one of his friends in 2015, they realized that the river Ganga, which is close to the hearts of Indians, is slowly becoming carcinogenic.
He felt that something had to be done. When he learned that the flowers from the temples and mosques come laden with harmful chemicals, he decided that it was his mission to repurpose this waste coming from places of worship. And hence, Phool.co was born.
Struggles in the Beginning
In the beginning, there were a lot of obstacles, like any other startup with a revolutionary idea. To the unaware and uninformed, the idea of using waste flowers seemed absurd. The team had to spend many hours in pitching their idea and experimenting and meeting with various stakeholders.
They spent one and a half years working hard at makeshift laboratories, flower cycling incense, and creating and crafting vermicompost. But they were very much dedicated to their mission of preserving the Ganges and empowering vernacular people. The team was determined to give them a chance to earn their livelihood.
Major Impacts of Phool.co
The team of Phool.co has 11 passionate members including the CEO Ankit Agrawal. They have been working towards making a change, creating an impact. But the impacts are multiple.
1. Decreased Flower Pollution
Phool has recycled 11,060 metric tonnes of flower waste to date. In India, people bring flowers to places of worship and the total amount is estimated to be 800 million metric tonnes per year across the country. The flowers rot and have unfortunate effects on the rivers and other water bodies they are being immersed in. But now, we see hope as Phool is working towards making a big change.
2. Empowering Women
Phool has employed 73 women on a full-time basis. And not employment, Phool is giving a new identity to these women. They are happy working at this startup, cleaning flowers, and getting paid on time. They feel at home and they get a feeling of belongingness working at Phool. Many of these women used to do odd jobs like manual scavenging to earn but now they feel that they have been granted a new life. It has helped become so many women financially independent.
3. Phool as a Blessing to the Ganges
As mentioned earlier, the chemicals on the flowers were contributing to the pollution level of the Ganges. But ever since Phool came into existence, 110 metric tonnes of these chemicals have been offset. Since the flowers are no longer immersed in the holy river, the pollution levels have shown a dip. The pollution of the Ganges is also a reason behind a large number of deaths due to water-borne diseases.
4. Respect for Manual Scavengers
19 children, whose mothers used to work as manual scavengers, have started going to school. We all know about the condition of manual scavengers. They barely get paid and are seen as inferiors in society. But Phool is helping them by providing employment opportunities with the income they deserve, in turn helping their children to go to school.
Read more about the Impact of Phool.co in India
Conclusion
Phool.co is a startup with a revolutionary idea associated with a noble cause. They understood the urgency of pollution levels of the Ganges. The river is synonymous with the Indian civilization itself and the pollution level has negative impacts on the lives of people. To make lives better, in general, we need more innovative startups like Phool work with a will to make a difference.
The fear of failure automatically comes in our mind when we hear about startups. But, fear of failure, in a way is preparing ourselves to fail rather than to win.
Read this amazing article about Fear of Failure in Entrepreneurial Journey
Written By - Neha Kundu
Edited By - Kashish Chadha
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