During a 7-day NSS camp at Kamban Government Higher Secondary School, APSCC ran a Cotton Bag Drive — distributing reusable bags and engaging students in hands-on action against single-use plastic pollution.
The drive was led by Dr. M. Nandhivarman, who delivered a special session on Environmental Awareness. Bringing together school students and local residents, the camp paired the distribution of cotton bags with candid discussion of the harmful impact of plastic on land and marine ecosystems — moving the conversation from awareness to everyday choice.
Why cotton bags matter
India generates several million tonnes of plastic waste each year, much of it single-use carry bags that persist in the environment for centuries. Cotton bags offer a durable, everyday alternative — and the drive made the case in practical terms:
Biodegradable: cotton breaks down naturally, where plastic can linger for hundreds of years. Less pollution: reusable bags reduce the flow of plastic into oceans and onto land. Lower carbon footprint: a cotton bag reused many times outperforms disposable plastic over its life. Waste reduction & durability: stronger and multipurpose, one bag replaces hundreds of throwaways. Chemical-free & safer for produce: no BPA or plastic residues, better for carrying food. Cost-effective: a small upfront cost that pays back over years of reuse.
From a camp to a movement
India's nationwide ban on identified single-use plastics in 2022 gave national weight to what grassroots campaigns had long been advocating. Behaviour change, however, rarely begins with policy alone — it takes conversations, demonstrations and small, repeatable actions at the community level.
That is where the National Service Scheme (NSS) becomes a force multiplier. By embedding sustainability education inside a residential camp, APSCC reached students at the moment they were most open to acting on it — and equipped them to carry the message home. The drive fostered a shared sense of collective responsibility, turning a week-long camp into the start of a lasting habit.
Aligned with the SDGs
The Cotton Bag Drive advanced responsible consumption and the protection of both marine and terrestrial ecosystems:
Change doesn't wait for policy — it begins with a bag, a choice, a conversation.
Event: Cotton Bag Drive, NSS Camp · Kamban Government Higher Secondary School, Puducherry · 26 March 2019.