As many as three truckloads of plastic were collected from the banks of Poonoor river on Sunday under the first phase of the clean-up drive initiated by Save Poonoor Puzha Forum on Sunday. NSS volunteers from various colleges in the district and local people from the 11 grama panchayats, through which the river flows, joined the drive.
Expert swimmers from the local community were engaged to collect plastic from the river, while the volunteers cleaned up the banks. The swimmers faced much difficulty in the form of heavy undercurrent which prevented them from going deeper into the river.
Plastic was mostly found accumulated at places where tree trunks had blocked water flow. The collected plastic will be sent for recycling under the aegis of Niravu Vengeri, the nodal agency for the project which is part of the NABARD Water Campaign.
The drive was marked by the overwhelming participation of local people. They offered refreshments to the volunteers, while many waited on the banks encouraging and helping swimmers who braved the heavy current. While scientists from the Centre for Water Resource Development and Management (CWRDM) and District Collector U.V. Jose joined the initiative at Kunnamangalam, NABARD General Manager P. Balchandran and Deputy General Manager James P. George monitored the activities in the panchayats.
The zero-budget programme is jointly undertaken by the district administration, district panchayat, grama panchayats, CWRDM, and NSS. The clean-up drive under the second phase will be held on October 2 when tree branches that obstruct the flow of water will be cleared. NSS volunteers will monitor the condition of the river during their annual camp in December. The final stage of cleaning will be held in March-April 2018, when the water level will be low.
