Nirmalaya recycles tonnes of floral waste from 300+ temples every month across Delhi NCR and offers employment opportunities to 40 women
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Serial entrepreneur Rajeev Bansal was saddened to learn that flower offerings made to temple deities are disposed of in water bodies like ponds and rivers, causing pollution. However, during a visit to the holy shrine of Shirdi in 2019, he observed that the nirmalya (flowers used in puja and handed over to devotees as a token of divine blessings) is recycled into incense instead of being thrown away. Inspired by this practice, Bansal teamed up with his brother Bharat and sister-in-law Surbhi to set up Nirmalaya in 2020. The D2C brand produces incense by recycling 500 tonnes of floral waste every year, procured from 300+ local temples in Delhi NCR. It also makes havan cups, puja accessories, natural essential oils and attars (perfumes).