New Delhi, 7th June 2022: Aligned with this year’s United Nations theme of ‘Only One Earth’, Panasonic India, a leading diversified technology company, marked World Environment Day by culminating the third successful year of its sustainability initiative – Harit Umang. The program addresses important issues linked to e-waste & plastic management, afforestation/ biodiversity, and energy conservation. During the ceremony students across participating schools and colleges were felicitated by Mr. Anand Kumar, Additional Director, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Government of India, and Mr. Manish Sharma, CEO, Panasonic India & South Asia for their exemplary work in driving awareness and participating actively in the Harit Umang program.
Speaking at the event, Mr. Manish Sharma, CEO, Panasonic India and South Asia said, “Environmental sustainability is becoming increasingly crucial for our natural habitat and future generations, necessitating collaborative measures and transformational efforts from all segments of society. At Panasonic globally, we have committed to reduce CO2 emissions by more than 300 million tons, about 1% of the current total global emissions by 2050. We are proud to have planted trees over the last two years towards our aim of building a greener and sustainable society, and we commit to planting another one lakh trees this year with an aim to have a positive green impact on society.”
“Congratulations to all our young Green Warriors and participating schools who have made an exemplary effort to sensitize the communities towards building a sustainable ecosystem for a better future.”
As part of the Harit Umang – Joy of Green program and upholding its commitment to driving a sustainable community, Panasonic India conducted tree plantation drives at Power Grids across the state of Haryana to address urban pollution and has planted one lakh trees in the past one year along with setting up e-waste collection hubs at schools and RWAs. Through the program, Panasonic India reached out to 500 schools to create awareness and sensitization amongst the students towards the adoption of green practices.
The Harit Umang program is in line with the agenda of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to spread awareness on e-waste and collaborates with MeITY for a far-reaching impact on wider stakeholders on adopting best practices for e-waste handling. Dr. Sandip Chatterjee, Scientist, Director & HOD of Electronics Materials & Component Development Division, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, conveyed his best wishes to the Panasonic team and the young ambassadors, commenting that it is a matter of pride to see the young students debating on the topic of global importance like Circular Economy.
Talking about the program, Ms. Ritu Ghosh, Head – Corporate Affairs & CSR, Panasonic India, said, “We implanted the idea of a clean and sustainable future with the inception of the Harit Umang program in 2019. And since then we have reached out to over 500 schools every year and have over 300 students as green ambassadors who are supporting us in our joint path toward a progressive and green future. Through our initiatives, we are not only driving awareness but also urging people to proactively become agents of change and help realize the visions of a sustainable future. Congratulations to all of the students for their outstanding efforts in preserving the green agenda and promoting sustainable practices.”
‘Harit Umang – Joy of Green’ program aims to nurture the ecosystem by developing sustainable practices and imparting green knowledge through active engagements with schools and communities. The program focuses on driving green practices around themes of safe & responsible disposal of e-waste, working towards zero plastic waste, energy conservation, and commitment towards plantation of more trees. As part of the program, Panasonic has innovatively engaged with the youth of the country through a series of knowledge-sharing sessions by the experts, interactive workshops and webinars, live practical training like seed ball making, mock UN sessions, and engaging contests invoking the creative and innovative spirit among students to imbibe green practice habits.
