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Hyderabad set to soak in organic colours
People in the city are warming up to the use of organic colours for Holi festival. There is a growing awareness among denizens especially in the higher income bracket who are opting for the organic route. “There is no doubt that awareness has grown by leaps but the cost factor is putting off people from using organic colours,” says B V Srinivas Rao of Jagruti Abhyudaya Sangham.
Hyderabad: People in the city are warming up to the use of organic colours for Holi festival. There is a growing awareness among denizens especially in the higher income bracket who are opting for the organic route. “There is no doubt that awareness has grown by leaps but the cost factor is putting off people from using organic colours,” says B V Srinivas Rao of Jagruti Abhyudaya Sangham.
A kilo of organic colour is available for Rs 600 as against synthetic ones that are available for Rs 150-Rs 200 in the market. Organic colours are available in five colours - blue, yellow, pink, orange and green.
However, if one wants to buy in bulk (minimum of five kg) from the Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU) it is available for Rs 375. Speaking to The Hans India, Dr Geetha Reddy, principle investigator, Eco-Holi colours project, PJTSAU says, “The Telangana State Pollution Control Board grant of Rs 1 crore helped us set up a large-scale production unit so we were able to produce 2 tonnes of organic colour.”
Last year Hyderabad Goes Green (HGG) sold a tonne of organic colours for Holi festival. Abhinav Gangumalla, chief executive officer, HGG says, “It is seven years since we started and we manufacture the colours ourselves. This year we expect a 10 per cent increase which has been the case for all these years.”
Several super markets too are now stocking organic colours as the demand is growing. A supervisor of a supermarket in Karkhana in Secunderabad said, “Customers now are aware and insist on organic colours but all cannot afford to spend Rs 600 for a kilo.” Nayantara of Our Sacred Space says, “On popular demand from customers to our weekly bazaar we have invited people to set up a stall for organic colours.”
In what can be termed as a new trend, gated communities and apartments are buying organic colours in bulk. For instance, Aparna Cyber City which has 1,000 apartments requested PJTSAU to set up a stall at the site. Rekha Krishnan, a resident of Sainikpuri says that the residents in their colony decided only to use organic colours and have placed an order.
Artificial colours made from chemicals pose a threat not just to the soil and pollutes groundwater but also affects the skin and eyes. Oxidised metals and industrial dyes are used in artificial colours. Organic colours are made with flowers, beetroot, indigo, turmeric, banana leaves and herbs.
