Manjappai vending machines inaugurated on HC campus In a first step towards making the Madras High Court campus free of the harmful single use plastic products five Manjappai dispensing machines and two reverse vending machines for disposing plastic bottles were inaugurated in the HC Campus. Note ‘Meendum Manjappai’ scheme was launched in December, 2021 to promote the use of cloth bags by the public and discourage the use of plastic bags. The Tamil Nadu government banned 14 types of one-time use and throw away plastic items on January 1, 2019, and reinforced the action under the 'People's Campaign Against Throw Away Plastics' on September 3, 2021. The Union government banned the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of identified single use plastic items, which have low utility and high littering potential, all across the country from July 1, 2022. StartupTN launches hackathon to find solutions to issues in agri sector The Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (StartupTN) has launched a unique hackathon — ‘Tamil Nadu Agri Hackathon 2022’ — to find solutions for issues in the agriculture sector. Agritech start-ups with commercially viable ideas will be funded with a grant of up to ₹10 lakh. Through this hackathon, the government is looking for scale able solutions in four areas. The first one is about a mechanical palmyra tree climbing device. The second challenge pertains to an integrated or stand-alone tapioca harvester and cleaner. The remaining two challenges lie in looking for efficient point of transaction testing for agricultural commodities, and developing innovative solutions to extend the shelf life of food and other agricultural products.
