The Forest Department on Tuesday started efforts to remove a large volume of clothes discarded by people who trek the Vellingiri Hills after taking a dip in the Andisunai stream.
District Forest Officer N. Jayaraj said efforts were being taken to bring the clothes to the downhill with the help of volunteers.
The action was initiated after The Hindu highlighted the pollution caused by the dumping of clothes by pilgrims after taking bath in the stream, which according to the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department (HR&CE) Department is a non-customary practice.
Mr. Jayaraj said the frontline staff and 20 volunteers had been drying the clothes dumped by pilgrims by spreading them on open grasslands. This was to reduce the weight of the clothes while carrying them downhill. “Around 500 kg of clothes are expected to be removed,” said Mr. Jayaraj.
He said the Forest Department would issue a notice to the HR&CE Department, requesting it to take steps to regulate the practice of dumping clothes and other waste materials by pilgrims along the trekking route.
The six-km-long trekking route passes through the reserve forest of the Boluvampatti forest range of the Coimbatore Forest Division.
“Due to effective screening at the starting point of the trekking at the downhill, the amount of plastic materials dumped by pilgrims have reduced this year. There is around 95% reduction in volume of plastic waste generated, mainly plastic water bottles,” said Boluvampatti forest range officer T. Suseendranath who inspected the trekking route on Tuesday.
At the Poondi temple at downhill, pilgrims were screened to prevent them from carrying plastic materials. From this year, pilgrims were charged a refundable fee of ₹20 per bottle to carry water bottles. A sticker was pasted on plastic bottles and the fee was refunded when they produced the bottle after the trekking, he said.
The staff also instruct pilgrims not to discard clothes after taking bath in the Andisunai. However, many pilgrims do not follow it.
Mr. Jayaraj added that the Forest Department collected and removed a total of 10,580 kg of plastic waste from the hills from February 19 this year.
