Idea turns greener out of home

The telecom giant has come up with innovations pan-India, creating green belts on bus shelters and hoardings

The new Idea campaign showcases how the mobile phone can be used as an efficient tool to read daily newspapers, generate e-bills, make payments and transactions and issue e-tickets and boarding passes, thereby saving tonnes of paper every day. In case you missed the latest commercial that saw actor Abhishek Bachchan personifying a tree to endorse this idea, here is an outdoor innovation along similar lines.

With a view to create greenery across the country and to spread awareness about its green initiative - Use Mobile, Save Paper - the telecom giant has transformed bus shelters into gardens by placing potted plants and tendril climbers in them. While creepers hang from the roofs, pots of various shapes and sizes have been arranged around the shelters, along with some saplings finding on the front panels. Adding greenery to the facade, the Idea shelters manage to offer cool shade to the commuters waiting at the stands. Circular cut outs placed on the top panels of the shelters carry the Idea logo, along with the copy - Use Mobile Save Paper.

Another innovation has a life size cut out of the brand ambassador, Bachchan, as he appears in the commercial.

Speaking about the campaign, Pradeep Shrivastava, chief marketing officer, Idea Cellular, says, "Environment as a subject touches all but gets attention only at strategic forums. The common man gets to contribute little towards the cause due to lack of direction and ideas. Hence, Idea has taken up the responsibility of educating the 500 million mobile phone users in the country. If they start using the mobile phone more judiciously, together we can make a significant contribution of saving paper, and therefore, the green cover necessary for the health of the planet."

The innovations have been executed across 19 cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Varanasi, Indore, Kochi and Visakhapatnam. While the innovation was conceptualised by 141 Wall Street, the execution has been done in association with Platinum Outdoor in certain parts of the country.

In Pune, as part of an on ground initiative, close to 4,000 people gathered at various locations, including Mariplex, Inox and SGS Mall, to take the Green Pledge to save paper, save trees and therefore contribute to creating a greener planet. People of all ages and walks of life were seen creating green thumb impressions on a big cut out of a dead tree, adding leaves to it. In days to come, more such on ground activities will be rolled out in other cities as well.

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Idea National