At Tirupati Brahmotsavam, Coca-Cola Foundation Campaign Puts Pilgrims at the Centre of Waste Management
The Maidaan Saaf campaign distributed reusable collection bags at high-footfall areas in Tirumala, encouraging visitors to take responsibility for the packaging waste generated during the festival.
Managing waste at large religious gatherings requires more than cleaning up after the crowds have left. It also depends on how waste is collected, segregated and disposed of while the event is underway.
At the 2026 Tirupati Brahmotsavam in Tirumala, Anandana, the Coca-Cola India Foundation, partnered with Lakshya – A Society for Social and Environmental Development, and collaborated with the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) to encourage pilgrims to participate in waste management.
The initiative was conducted under Maidaan Saaf, a campaign focused on waste collection, segregation and recycling at high-footfall cultural and sporting events. Visitors were given reusable collection bags to gather packaging waste during their visit and carry it for responsible disposal. The intervention was implemented across key high-footfall areas in Tirumala.
According to the organisers, this was the first time the initiative had been undertaken during the festival. Its approach placed some responsibility for waste collection with visitors themselves, rather than treating waste management solely as a post-event cleaning exercise.
Dr. Sumant Shekhar of Lakshya said that working directly with pilgrims demonstrated how providing people with practical means to manage waste could encourage participation. The organisers also said the initiative received visibility among visitors and was appreciated by TTD officials.
The Tirupati effort is part of the wider Maidaan Saaf campaign, launched in 2023 during the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup. Since then, the campaign has been implemented at events including the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai, Rath Yatra in Puri and Maha Kumbh 2025 in Prayagraj.
Large gatherings present a recurring waste-management challenge, particularly when large volumes of packaging are generated within a limited period. Collection bags can help visitors hold on to waste until they find a disposal point, but their effectiveness also depends on the availability of collection infrastructure, segregation systems and appropriate downstream processing.
The press release does not specify how many bags were distributed at Tirumala, how much waste was collected, or what proportion was segregated or recycled. Those figures would help establish the initiative’s measurable environmental impact beyond awareness and participation.
For now, the campaign offers a practical approach to involving pilgrims in keeping a high-footfall religious destination clean. Whether that participation results in sustained improvements will depend on how individual actions connect with the wider waste-management system.
