Maha: ASI recovers over 1,000 plastic bottles from trench at Daulatabad fort

The fort, located nearly 12 km away from Aurangabad city, is famous for the man-made trench surrounding it, which had made it impregnable to invaders.Tourists leave behind plastic bottles in the premises of the fort and due to wind and flow of water, these bottles come down to the trench, littering the water, the official said.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has recovered more than 1,000 plastic bottles from the trench at Daulatabad (Devgiri) fort in Maharashtra's Aurangabad, an official said on Thursday. The fort, located nearly 12 km away from Aurangabad city, is famous for the man-made trench surrounding it, which had made it impregnable to invaders.

Tourists leave behind plastic bottles in the premises of the fort and due to wind and flow of water, these bottles come down to the trench, littering the water, the official said. ''Empty bottles come down with the wind and flowing water, due to the slope on the fort. We fished out nearly 1,500 bottles from the trench recently, making it plastic-free,'' conservation assistant of the fort Sanjay Rohankar told PTI. The ASI is now trying out a new measure to prevent tourists from leaving behind plastic bottles at the fort, he said. ''We are placing stickers on plastic bottles and taking a deposit of Rs 20 per bottle from visitors. Tourists get the deposit back when they show their bottle while exiting the premises,'' the official said. At least 17,200 tourists have paid the deposit since the measure was implemented in January, he said, adding that the move will help reduce littering inside the premises.