Huge Olive Ridley Sea Turtle Made from Plastic Waste Installed at Puri Beach to Spread Awareness

Dec 01, 2021 by Kashish Bhardwaj in Environment

Manveer Singh, the winner of the “METIS Initiative on Plastics and Indo-Pacific Ocean 2021” has mounted the artwork to create awareness, and so far he has collected around 350 kilograms of plastic

Delhi-based visual artist, Manveer Singh has created a 15-feet Olive Ridley sea turtle artwork out of plastic at Puri beach. The artwork has been installed to spread awareness among people regarding the adverse effects of plastic waste on the environment including aquatic life.

The visual artist happens to be known as ‘Plasticwalla’ as he is the winner of the “METIS Initiative on Plastics and Indo-Pacific Ocean 2021”, which is an association between Utsha Foundation and AFD.

15-feet Olive Ridley Sea Turtle artwork_@BusleBruno

Image: Twitter@BosleBruno

Manveer’s Project “From Plastic to Art” is based on ‘best out of waste skill,’ for which he has collected plastic from several locations across Bhubaneswar city. Alongside, he also conducted workshops in numerous schools and colleges to spread awareness concerning plastic pollution.

Manveer explains;

I choose Olive Ridley because mass nesting of these is very common in Odisha. All species on this planet are affected by plastic, including Olive Ridley. They often eat plastic after mistaking it for Jellyfish. Mass nesting is huge, but unfortunately, very few of these turtles survive. I want to bring their crisis before the people because they play a big role in maintaining the life cycle on this planet. Every day-use plastic has been used for this artwork.

Manveer’s goal is to make aware the maximum number of people about the problems faced by turtles and other sea creatures because of plastic waste. Till now, he has turned nearly 350 kilograms of plastic into attractive items of different shapes and sizes.

Bhubaneshwar: Manveer Singh has installed a 15-feet Olive Ridley sea turtle using plastic. “The idea is to depict the crisis faced by turtles & sea animals due to plastic; turtle’s belly is clogged with plastic. Despite mass nesting in Odisha, very few Ridley’s survive,” he said pic.twitter.com/kCwpE9dysg

— ANI (@ANI) November 24, 2021

The artist has chosen a famous spot for his work in order to be able to connect with more people. The initiative is creative and informative at the same time.