The plastic in our rivers, the risk on our plates 

In this gripping episode of Good Food Talks, we sit down with Captain D.C. Sekhar, a former merchant navy officer who once navigated the oceans and now steers a mission of cleaning up India’s rivers. 

Because the truth is, river pollution isn’t just a problem for “the environment.” It’s a problem for all of us. For the water we drink, the food we grow, and the lives we lead. 

The plastic we throw becomes the poison we absorb 

Captain Sekhar is the founder of AlphaMERS, a pioneering clean-tech company that’s designed floating trash barriers powered entirely by the flow of water. No electricity, no manpower, and no noise. Just smart engineering that lets nature do the work. 

Over 40 of these systems are already running across India in cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, and more, silently stopping tons of plastic waste from entering our water bodies every single day. 

But here’s the thing: once rivers are polluted, the impact doesn’t stop at the water’s edge. Contaminated rivers affect agriculture, groundwater, fish, and more. Slowly, silently, it enters the food chain. 

As Captain Sekhar says, “We don’t see it, so we think it’s not there. But it is. It’s in the water, the soil, the food. And it starts with what we let into our rivers.” 

Clean water isn’t optional, it’s infrastructure 

Captain Sekhar’s work forces us to rethink how we view rivers, not as distant bodies of water but as essential lifelines that nourish our land, recharge our soil, and support our lives. 

When we pollute our rivers, we damage far more than the water. We break the systems that keep everything else alive. 

As Captain Sekhar reminds us, the plastic problem isn’t far away. It’s not in someone else’s city or country. It’s in our rivers, our soil and our food chain. And fixing it begins with each one of us. 

🎧 Watch the full episode on YouTube: Good Food Talks Ep 12 | Capt. D.C. Sekhar on River Pollution & Food Safety | Akshayakalpa