BHUBANESWAR: A country, state or region can’t be perfect unless the citizens of endeavor to make it so. Similar is the case with the aspect of cleanliness. If the people of a particular region do not value cleanliness and act on it, it becomes unachievable.
The state government had enacted the decision of a plastic ban in six urban local bodies in the state. After a cooling period of 30 days, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) had carried out a massive enforcement drive across the city to execute the ban.
However, evidence from the past suggests that enforcement drives by various agencies is not the solution to a problem as big as the use of plastic. Taking lessons from this, multiple biker groups of the city like We The Road Queen, Moto Gear heads, Royal Enfield’s Gugnani Automobiles, KIIT bikers group organised a beach cleaning event Sunday where more than 25 riders from the city took a ride from Bhubaneswar to Chandrabhaga in Konark. The distance between the two destinations is 70 km.
The riders conducted the beach cleaning drive by collecting bags of garbage that included mainly plastic bags, plastic bottles, cans, alcohol bottles, idol immersion remains and chips packets among others in a 700 sqm area. Many tourists joined hands by switching on mobile torches to augment the drive. On the occasion, musician Krishna Gopal Bhaumik played flute on the beach.
Sangeeta Sahoo, a rider and member of We the Road Queen said, “Chandrabhaga is rich in marine resources. It is considered as a place of natural cure for lepers. Chandrabhaga beach is Asia’s first to get the Blue Flag certification which is given to environment-friendly beaches, which are equipped with amenities of international standards for tourists.
However, this does not stop people from littering all over the place. We as citizens must realise that the cleanliness of our own place is our own responsibility. The state government’s decision must be implemented by us all.