Over 700 volunteers clean up seashores in Rameswaram

Volunteers cleared about eight tonness of waste from the beaches on theoccasion of the International Coastal Cleanup Day.

The Mandapam Station of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG), in association with the district administration and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has cleaned up the Agnitheertham beach in front of Sri Ramanathaswamy Temple and other points in the Rameswaram island.

More than 700 volunteers from the ICG, local schools and members of National Service Scheme, National Cadet Corps and scouts joined hands to clean up the Agnitheertham beach, thronged by pilgrims, the white sand Ariayaman beach and Kundugal point, flocked by the tourists and seashore area of Mandapam fisheries jetty on Saturday.

The annual clean-up was launched on the occasion of International Coastal Clean-up Day, a worldwide event to clean beaches and coasts to make seashores environment-friendly, Station Commander H.H. More said.

Data collection and recording of specific marine debris were this year’s unique feature in the clean-up drive, he said, adding the ocean conservancy would compile, analyse and keep track of the data.

The information would be used to create awareness among the public, industry and government authorities of the need to find lasting solutions to the problem and make the beaches clean.

The volunteers had collected about eight tonnes of marine debris such as fishing lines, waste nets, food wrappers, ropes, plastic bags and sheets, and disposed them of at the local municipal dumping yard, a press release issued by the Coast Guard said here.