Jorhat, Oct. 12: Groom yourself and do a bit for the environment too.

The Centre for Forest-based Livelihood and Extension at Agartala in Tripura under the Indian Council of Forest Research and Education, Dehradun, has designed and developed low-cost, eco-friendly shaving brush, which upholds wildlife protection at the same time.

The brush made of manjari green, which is extensively use to make brooms, has a bamboo base which makes it totally disposable.

The regional director of the centre, Pawan Kumar Kaushik, said the brush was made of the panicles of the broom grass ( Thysanolaena maxima) locally known as Arjun flower with a bamboo base.

"Very few people know that the bristles of shaving brushes are made up of the hair of badgers and usually have plastic handles and when disposed of harm the environment. Alternately, they may be made up of synthetic fibre or plastic," he said.

He said the brush would be produced by Panchai Farmers Club and marketed by Craft Bazaar, a founded by Shubhajit Choudhury, Bentam Debbarma, Satyapriya Das and Subrata Das of NIT Agartala.

"If marketed properly this eco-friendly product may receive a potential demand of more than 50,000 pieces per day when supplied to high-end hotels and tourist resorts in the country. Besides this, it also has adequate potential to attract customers at salons and spas," he added.

Kaushi said the cost per piece was just Rs 5 which could be sold for Rs 15. "The life cycle of manjari green is at least eight months from the day of first use and because of its low-cost it can be a 'use-and-throw' brush," he said.

Kaushik said the use of this product would not only decreases hunting of badgers and reduce use of plastic but also generate the livelihood of the target communities in the Northeast. He said the product would be continuously upgraded based on the feedback of customers.

"Using this concept, other products like paintbrushes and wall paintbrushes are also being developed by various groups of innovative youths associated with the centre," Kaushik said.