What started as a simple concern about polluted drinking water has now earned three Indian teenagers international recognition for environmental innovation.

Sixteen-year-olds Vivaan Chhawchharia, Ariana Agarwal, and Avyana Mehta were named the Asia winners of The Earth Prize 2026 for developing “Plas-Stick,” a biodegradable solution designed to remove microplastics from water using powdered tamarind seeds.

The idea reportedly emerged after the students visited rural communities where families stored drinking water in large shared containers without access to advanced filtration systems.

During one visit, watching a child drink from one of the containers drew attention to the growing issue of invisible microplastic contamination in everyday drinking water.

What Is ‘Plas-Stick’?

Plas-Stick is a biodegradable powder mainly created from tamarind seed waste. According to the students, when the powder is added to contaminated water, it attracts microplastic particles and causes them to combine into larger clumps. These clumps can then reportedly be removed using a handheld magnet.

Because the solution uses biodegradable, locally available materials and does not require electricity or expensive infrastructure, the students believe it could be useful in rural and low-resource communities.

Collaboration With IIT Guwahati

The students also collaborated with experts from Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati while developing the project.

Growing Concerns Around Microplastics

Microplastics are extremely tiny plastic particles, usually measuring less than five millimetres, formed from the breakdown of larger plastics, synthetic clothing fibres, industrial waste, and packaging materials.

Recent scientific studies have detected microplastics in drinking water, seafood, human blood, lungs, placentas, and even brain tissue. While researchers are still studying the long-term health effects, many scientists consider microplastic pollution an emerging global environmental concern.

About The Earth Prize

The Earth Foundation describes The Earth Prize as the world’s largest environmental competition and “ideas incubator” for teenagers aged 13 to 19.

Clarification on Prize Money

Several viral social media posts incorrectly claimed that each student individually received $125,000. However, official information released by The Earth Prize confirmed that the team collectively received a regional award grant of $12,500.

One of the project’s most innovative features is its use of tamarind seed waste. Tamarind seeds naturally contain binding compounds that may help attract and bind particles in water.

By using agricultural waste instead of synthetic chemicals, the students created a low-cost and biodegradable solution while highlighting how locally available resources can support environmental innovation.

Still in Development Stage

Although the project has received international recognition, Plas-Stick is still under development and has not yet undergone large-scale independent scientific testing. Further validation and testing would be required before the solution can be implemented on a wider scale.

[With TOI inpus]