SMVDU Katra, September 2019. Mr. Kiran Kumar Sharma, Chairman & CEO of International Volunteer Foundation (IVF), and two times national award winner, delivered a special lecture on “Ill effects of plastic bags and the need to shift to cloth bags” to the students at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU) Katra. In his talk, he stressed on the need to shun plastic bags, bottles, and other plastic made items, and to embrace the idea of using cloth bags. He also spoke about massive cleanliness campaign, named “Save the Trikuta Mountains”, which was jointly organized by the NSS wing of SMVDU along with the IVF. Mr. Sharma also told students to engage in social service and to help the destitute as there is no act nobler than that. He further stated, our culture also tells us to stay in peace and harmony with nature rather than destroy it to the very core. He also said, it is high time that we should have many waste management systems including compost plants to tackle with wastes generated in huge quantity every day. The lecture was motivational and interactive and was applauded by students. The event was coordinated by Mr. Sumanta S. Sharma, Faculty Coordinator, NSS, SMVDU along with the volunteers of SMVD University.