1. A unique watering solution The WiFi drip controller device by Mangaluru couple Santosh and Deepika Shet’s startup Ukshati Automation System allows people to water their plants while they are away.

The Internet operated tap is also connected to a water-tank-based watering system that allows the user to store greywater and use it accordingly.

2. A sustainable solution for ‘stinky’ urinals The EcoTrapIn device, innovated by Mumbai’s Neha Bagoria, is made of an antibacterial material that solves the problem of odour in urinals.

This also saves large amounts of water that would have otherwise been wasted through flushing. To date, the innovation has saved more than 1,67,900 litres of water per urinal.

3. Bamboo brooms Did you know that in India, almost 40,000 metric tons of plastic is used for broom handles? To get a grip on this Indian Forest Services (IFS) officer Prasada Rao has come up with bamboo brooms.

In the process, Rao has also generated employment for more than 1,000 tribal households in Tripura who are involved in the procurement of material, assembling and packaging of the bamboo handles.

4. A marketplace for biofuel Buyofuel, the brainchild of entrepreneur Kishan Karunakaran is a one-stop shop for buyers and sellers of biofuels.

The B2B marketplace has a network of raw material aggregators, manufacturers, consumers, and waste generators, and streamlines the process of making a shift to sustainable fuel.

5. Upcycled furniture Ek Kalakar, a sustainable design studio by Gujarat-based designer Anurag Bhandari, turns discarded wood, TMT steel bars, old cupboards, broken chairs and manhole covers into classy furniture.

His flagship piece is a table made of a fallen tree which was uprooted during a storm. “I cut the roots vertically in half and then supported this wooden structure with a mirror box,” he says.

6. Reducing carbon footprint Launched by Anirudh Gupta and Siddhanth Jayaram in November 2021, Climes gives customers a chance to “neutralise” their carbon footprint through a carbon credit system where 1 ‘clime’ is equal to 1 kg of carbon neutralised.

The money is contributed to various eco projects across India. The venture has neutralised 13 lakh kg of carbon until now.

7.  A smart composter Poonam Bir Kasturi’s startup Daily Dump has launched the Terrabite Home Composter, which uses an aerobic process to compost waste, eliminating odour.

The lightweight design made of HDPE recyclable UV-resistant plastic ensures the compost is ready in 30 days, in contrast to the traditional 45 days. The Terrabite has a capacity that goes up to 2 kg daily.

8. Fixing potholes PotHoleRaja®, a social enterprise, is on a mission to fix roads in India using its patented ‘eco-friendly’ and ‘durable’ technology called GridMats®.

The venture has employed over 3,000 kg of recycled plastic to construct roads that have a 5-year warranty of being pothole-free. The process also consumes 30 percent less water than traditional concrete roads and does not require any steel reinforcement.

9. Waterproof wood Chennai-based venture Indowud NFC, started by entrepreneur B L Bengani, uses agricultural husk to create an eco-friendly form of wood that is termite-proof, waterproof, flame retardant and  100% recyclable.

By using agricultural husk, Bengani says they are saving 20,000 trees from being cut.

10. Eco sensitivity in construction Padma Shri recipient Gopal Shankar keeps sustainability at the heart of his architecture — whether it’s the first township built with green building technology in India, or the world’s largest earth building in Bangladesh.

His architecture, he says, is founded on two principles: local availability of material and eco-sensitivity.

For instance, “When I build in Kerala, for instance, I look at bamboo because it’s locally found and meets my strength requirements. It is a significant replacement for steel, matching its tensile strength.”

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