The town of Vellore is well known in Tamil Nadu for its historic forts and temples.  Surrounded by 256 hills and situated along the banks of the Palar River, Vellore’s location sounds idyllic.

C. Srinivasan with his rooftop garden. He claims it is possible to grow most vegetables in biodegradable containers, all using waste water from the kitchen.

However, Palar now runs dry and the hills are bare – a result of several years of deforestation by granite and timber companies, as well as villagers who live in the 96 villages at the base of the Vellore hills, who have few other livelihood options. The bare, rocky hillsides now radiate heat, giving Vellore its scorching reputation as the hottest town in Tamil Nadu.

Determined to change this situation, C. Srinivasan, a young college student in the early 90s, set off into the Vellore hills to find a solution. His search led him to several interconnected problems, all of which needed to be addressed if a solution were to be found. 

Impoverished villagers, who lived near the hills, cut down trees for firewood, set fire to the forest to clear areas for their cattle to graze in, and brewed illicit liquor. Srinivasan realized that in order to bring back greenery to the hills and recharge the ground water, he had to find gainful employment for these villagers and have them actively participate in protecting the hills.

So he established the Vellore Hills Restoration Project and formed Exnora Green Cross (EGC) in 1995, as an affiliate of Exnora International, with a vision to “bring about socio-economic change through employment generation based on environmental conservation by enlisting people's participation”.

 EGC works closely with local village panchayats and the Forest Department of Vellore, which has selected the organization as an important member of the ‘National Afforestation Programme’ (NAP) in Vellore district.

EGC started its work in the hills with a plan to de-silt the pre-existing ponds on the hills, dig new ponds, build check dams which will arrest the water run-off from the hillsides, plant seedlings and eventually create a healthy forest that is protected and valued by the people living near it.

EGC also planned to restore the historic forts on the hills which are currently run down and neglected. Their vision was to eventually have educational trekking programmes in the hills, with guided tours to the historic forts, where tourists can be informed about the ecological importance of the hills, and our need to protect them.

To carry the work forward, EGC established the Indian Green Force (IGF), which is a group of young men and women from local villages who have been trained in restoration work and forest protection. The IGF currently has 22 full-time members and work is underway in four of the Vellore Hills. Students from local colleges also volunteer to work on the hills as part of their curriculum.

On my recent visit to Vellore, I was guided up the hills by Mr. Sekhar, one of Mr. Srinivasan’s close associates on the Hill Project. We quickly left the bustle of the town behind as we walked up the hill, and soon had an excellent view of the town of Vellore surrounded by serene hills on all sides.

Evidence of the restoration work was everywhere, as Mr. Sekhar pointed out the numerous check dams and freshly dug ponds, as well as massive ponds dating back to hundreds of years which had been laboriously de-silted by the workers. There was a marked increase in green cover in the areas where the team had been working.

Though still very dilapidated and overgrown with weeds and vines, the fort on the hilltop was impressive. We visited the lookout spots from where sentries must have had an excellent view of the entire hillside, and cleverly concealed underground chambers where soldiers must have hidden for ambush attacks. If restored properly, this location and similar forts on other hilltops could turn into fascinating pieces of history for visitors to enjoy.

As the work on the hills started moving forward, Srinivasan realized that Vellore faced many more environmental problems within the town. There was almost no open space left in the town where waste could be dumped. As a result, garbage was being burnt or left to rot in the open all over town.

To address this problem, Srinivasan started the Community Composting Project with the support of UNICEF where waste from five neighbourhoods was recycled and successfully processed. Following this success, under the local government’s request, Srinivasan worked his magic on the Vellore fish market, which was breeding germs in its piles of decomposing fish waste. By collecting all the biodegradable waste from there and composting it at another location, Srinivasan turned the market from a health hazard into a clean and bustling market place. Many more such projects followed in quick succession, as his work came to be recognized by more people.

On my visit to Vellore, Mr. Srinivasan took me on a tour of the Vellore Collectorate, which was on its way to being a zero waste facility. His energy and enthusiasm were infectious and his deep commitment to the cause was unmistakable, as he quickly filled me in on the various activities that had been planned and implemented at this location.

The Collectorate occupies 8.42 acres, and has two building blocks housing 26 departments with 787 staff members. Before the EGC was called in, all the waste generated within the campus was carelessly thrown anywhere, or being burnt. The stagnant water and decomposing waste was a health hazard and attracted rats, mosquitoes and stray dogs, making the area filthy and unpleasant.

The Gandhi Nagar Exnora Women’s Self Help Group was formed with about twenty women who took over the responsibility of cleaning the Collectorate, and maintaining it as a zero waste facility. The Collectorate staff contributed a small sum per month, and the Collector contributed money as well.

Though we had seen pictures of how the Collectorate had been before EGC took over, we couldn’t relate that image to the campus we toured on our visit. Mr. Srinivasan and the women of the SHG showed us the recycling center where recyclable waste is separated and packed for sale, the neatly covered vermicompost pits where biodegradable waste transforms into fertilizer, a cattle shed where cattle rescued from slaughter houses were housed, the biogas plants into which cowdung slurry is fed, the canteen which uses milk from the cowshed and the biogas to cook food for the employees, and the organic roof garden where some of the food for the canteen is grown. Sale of the recycled material is now earning money for the SHG as well.

Our walk through the facility was pleasant and tree-lined, with not a scrap of litter in sight. Cattle fodder had been planted in all open areas, which was pleasing to the eye as well. Several residents from nearby colonies strolled through the campus on their evening walk along with us, which would have been unimaginable earlier. We were thoroughly impressed.

Srinivasan’s model has been widely acclaimed as the ‘National Model’ for Zero Waste Management (ZWM). Municipal Corporations from Mysore, Punjab, and Nepal have visited Vellore to learn the process for use in their municipalities. Srinivasan has been appointed as the ‘Head Trainer’ in ZWM for Tamil Nadu. The Secretary of Rural Development, TN, has further sanctioned funds to print 1000 booklets of a picture story of this transformation to be distributed to all the district administrations all over the country.

More information
Exnora Green Cross, Vellore  

C.Srinivasan: Awards and recognitions
Environment Management Award by  Tamilnadu Government Awards for 2000-‘04
Ashoka Fellowship awarded in 2003 by Ashoka Innovators for the Public, Washington D.C., U.S.A.
Vocational Award by Rotary Club of Vellore, Midtown
Rejuvenate India Movement Fellowship awarded in 2003 by Rejuvenate India Movement, Bangalore. 

C. Srinivasan in the media
Greening the hills : India Together  
A ‘garbage-to-gold’ development model from Vellore: Tribune India

---
Photos and text: Bindu Viswanathan, Atlanta