3 min readMar 9, 2026 09:40 AM ISTThe latest initiative to save the consumption of wood and prevent the cutting of trees has also achieved the mission of connecting more than 25,000 citizens of Ahmedabad city with environment-oriented work.Taking the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s ‘eco-friendly’ campaign a step forward, the civic body’s Cattle Nuisance and Control Department (CNCD) has started a pilot project to make soaps from the ash from Holi festival pyres and discarded peels of citrus fruit from juice centres.The CNCD distributed 251 Vedic Holi kits made out of cow dung across the city and after the celebration of ‘Vedic Holi’ and collected 300 kg of ash from seven places.“While working with murti artists during Ganesh Chaturthi last year, the idea was floated by them to make soaps using ash and peels of oranges, lemons and mosambi- all items which otherwise are considered waste. We all know that in old times our ancestors would use ash to clean utensils. It was then we decided to make the best out of waste and use the Vedic ash from Holi celebrations and the peels from juice centres,” CNCD head of department Naresh Rajput told The Indian Express.A pilot project to make organic soap from ash and fruit peels has been started at CNCD’s Karuna Mandir in Bakrol and Danilimda. The soaps will be distributed free of cost to the visitors of Karuna Mandir, Rajput says.However, AMC has plans to scale up this initiative. “At present, we had asked the juice centres near our corporation offices in areas like Maninagar, Khamasa and a few others to not throw the peels but let the AMC van collect these. We also provided them dustbins to collect the same. But in the coming days, we have plans to scale this up to a bigger scale,” Rajput adds.The campaign of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation to preserve the environment along with the celebration of festivals received a good response as over 2,150 boxes of Vedic holi kits were prepared and delivered to the doorsteps of citizens. Usually, 700-800 kg of wood is consumed in Holika Dahan. Replacing this, 170 kg of cow dung products are consumed in one Holika Dahan. The latest initiative to save the consumption of wood and prevent the cutting of trees has also achieved the mission of connecting more than 25,000 citizens of Ahmedabad city with environment-oriented work.The AMC CNCD Department prepared and packed natural sticks for Vedic Holi at Bakrol and Danilimda Karuna Mandir, using organic food waste and cow dung as resources. The initiative of Vedic Holi launched in 2024 with 11 locations was also scaled up this year with 101 locations across the city. In 2025 around 45 locations were covered.Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram© The Indian Express Pvt LtdAdvertisementLoading Recommendations...Live BlogDubai, UAE, Abu Dhabi News LIVE Updates: UAE air defences intercept Iranian missiles, drones15 minutes agoUS-Israel vs Iran War News LIVE Updates: Trump says decision to end Iran war will be ‘mutual’ with Netanyahu as Mojtaba Khamenei becomes new supreme leader19 minutes agoICAI CA Foundation, Inter Result January 2026 Live Updates: Results out; Logapriya PP secures AIR 1 in foundation exam16 hours agoDhurandhar 2 Advance Booking: Ranveer Singh film sells 1.2 lakh tickets, earns over Rs 13 crore17 hours agoDubai News Live Updates: Iranian attack targets facility near Bahrain’s Salman Port; civil defence works to control fire17 hours ago