District Collector A. Mallikharjuna has called on all citizens to keep the beaches clean as scores of tourists, including foreigners, visit them and it is important to give them a good impression of the city.
The Collector participated in a beach cleaning programme - Sagara Teera Swatchata - organised by the District Administration, at R. K. Beach in Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
Addressing the gathering, Dr. Mallikharjuna said that the beach cleaning programme would hereafter be organised on the first Sunday of every month, with prior intimation to the public. A portal on the theme ‘Our Vizag, our responsibility’ would also be launched on ‘beach cleaning’. He called on every citizen to do their bit to keep the city clean. He also appealed to beach-goers to make it a point to use dustbins to throw plastic covers, bottles and other waste into them, and strictly abstain from dumping waste at will on the beach.
The officials and staff divided themselves into groups and participated in the beach cleaning programme at R. K. Beach, Gokul Park, Peda Jalaripeta and Jodugullapalem on Sunday. They collected the plastic bottles and other waste from the beaches. The programme, which began at 6 a.m., concluded at at 8 a.m.
Apart from the Collector, Mayor Golagani Hari Venkata Kumari, Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) Commissioner Lakshmisha, Police Commissioner Ch. Srikanth, Joint Collector K. S. Viswanathan, MLA Tippala Nagireddy, VMRDA Chairperson A. Vijayanirmala, government employees, students and representatives of NGO s participated in the programme.
The NSS Volunteers and Programme Officers of St. Joseph College cleaned the beach at Peda Jalaripeta as a part of the programme.
The students along with the Municipal workers cleared huge amounts of waste, garbage and plastic from the beach. Students of different colleges in the city also participated in the programme. NSS Programme Officers of St. Joseph’s Women’s College K. Manikya Kumari and J. Nirmala participated in the programme. Principal Sr. Shyji appreciated the students and staff for their selfless service towards the cause of the environment.
A total of 65 tonnes of garbage and wastes were cleared during the drive, according to a statement issued by the Collectorate later in the day. This includes 29 tonnes at Jodugullapalem, six tonnes at Peda Jalaripeta, 9.5 tonnes at RK Beach and 20 tonnes at Gokul Park. The Collector said that measures would be taken to enforce the ban on plastic in GVMC limits, ahead of the forthcoming World Environment Day on June 5.
