A Kid from Kashmir is On a Mission to Build Eco-friendly Cars from Recycled Materials

Meet Shahid, a 16-year-old kid from Kashmir, who has a dream to build cars from recycled waste materials. He is Shahid Ul Islam, a passion-driven teenager from the valleys of Kashmir, who is keen to build eco-friendly cars, which he is looking forward to being named as ‘Made-in-Kashmir’ cars. Shahid is a resident of the Thokarpura locality in the Pulwama district of South Kashmir. Shahid, at present, is actively engaged in developing prototype vehicles from scrap. He seeks, through his effort of reusing the waste materials, to inspire the locals of Kashmir towards making a difference to their motherland. Speaking about his journey, Shahid told that it was his childhood dream to build things which over time made him focus on recyclables. He added that thinking about choosing an eco-friendly path to make a difference in his society gives him immense satisfaction. Shahid’s zeal to build vehicles got a push during the COVID-19 pandemic, where he was opportune to get his hands-on truck parts. Shahid expects to create a range of products, apart from the regular vehicles made out of batteries and motors. His list of scrap materials includes electronic waste, chips, rim, wood, plastic sheets, etc. What truly signifies his fascination for building eco-friendly stuff more than anything is that he underwent surgery in the past, but that didn’t hinder his effort even a bit. “We have a lot in Kashmir to look at – and I want waste material to be recycled – be it for home decorations or the outdoors. I myself [saved] school fares, that too, by going school on foot – to collect waste material for production. Also, I had to buy the stuff,” said Shahid, who converted his entire bedroom into a mini-workshop. Abdul Rashid Bhat, who is Shahid’s father, said that he came to know late about his inventions, but now he is very proud of his work and wants him to continue living his dream. He added that he is ready to support his son’s initiative in every way. It takes around 20 days, sometimes even a month, for Shahid to create replicas of vehicles. He spares 2-3 hours every day turning trash into car replicas inside his room-turned-mini-workshop. His vision to make Kashmir pollution-free takes into consideration not just locals and innovators, but he pleases the Kashmir Government as well, to lend support to innovators like him so that more and more people would take part in strengthening the local recycling ecosystem and contribute towards a better future of Kashmir.