Tamil Nadu Startup Turns Pilgrimage Plastic Waste Into Furniture for Forest Offices

Written by Intern Rency Gomes || Team Allycaral 

At the sacred Vellingiri Hills in Tamil Nadu, thousands of pilgrims climb the steep trail each year, carrying food packets, snack wrappers and water bottles as offerings and essentials. By evening, forest officials and volunteers undertake the less-visible task of clearing the plastic waste left behind.

Now, that discarded plastic is finding new life within the same forest landscape.

In partnership with Coimbatore-based Recompose Recycling Private Limited, the Tamil Nadu Forest Department has converted multi-layered plastic (MLP) waste collected from the Vellingiri trekking route into functional furniture. Installed at the Forest Range Office in Booluvampatti, the pieces include an almirah, a table and a three-seater sofa — all made from recycled plastic gathered along the pilgrimage trail.

Closing the Loop on Multi-Layered Plastic

Multi-layered plastic, commonly found in snack wrappers and sachets, is difficult to recycle due to its layered composition. Instead of sending this material to landfills, the forest department channels it to Recompose Recycling, which processes the waste into roofing sheets, covering sheets, paver blocks and other durable materials.

By fabricating these materials into furniture for forest offices, the initiative creates a visible and practical link between waste generation and reuse. For a pilgrimage site that experiences seasonal surges in footfall, this model offers a structured way to manage plastic waste locally rather than shifting the burden elsewhere.

The company’s efforts extend beyond Vellingiri Hills. In Kittampalayam village panchayat in Coimbatore district, 1,908 kg of processed multi-layered plastic waste was used to construct a new bus shelter, replacing a damaged structure.

The initiative relied heavily on community participation. Local authorities educated residents on source segregation and composting organic waste, ensuring that plastic waste could be systematically collected and repurposed. The resulting bus shelter stands as proof that low-value, hard-to-recycle plastic can be transformed into long-lasting public infrastructure.

Across India, several enterprises are experimenting with plastic waste solutions. Companies are building supply chains to convert discarded plastic into high-quality recycled materials, while others are using plastic waste to repair roads and construct durable infrastructure.

What sets the Vellingiri initiative apart is its integration at the source — a site of faith — in collaboration with government bodies and local communities. By organising collection and recycling directly at the pilgrimage site, the project demonstrates how environmental responsibility can coexist with tradition.

Each year, pilgrims climb the Vellingiri Hills in devotion. Today, through organised recycling systems, the plastic left behind returns in the form of functional assets — supporting and sustaining the very forest landscape that draws visitors in the first place.