Waves of Change

Five thousand volunteers - from 12-year-olds to 80-year-olds. Each one united in one effort - to clean the banks of Pune's rivers.

From school students to NGOs,more than 5000 volunteers will participate in the International Coastal Cleanup organised by IMF and Ocean Savers of India on October 8

Five thousand volunteers – from 12-year-olds to 80-year-olds. Each one united in one effort – to clean the banks of Pune’s rivers. On October 8,these volunteers will start the cleanup process from S M Joshi Bridge and go on till Mundhwa as part of the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). Organised by Ocean Conservancy,USA,ICC is held on September 17 in 160 countries. While it was conducted in other cities on this day,Pune will witness the joint effort in October owing to the heavy rains in September. In India,ICC is conducted by the Indian Maritime Foundation (IMF) and is in its ninth year now. Commodore Rajan Vir (Retd Indian Navy),president,IMF,started the project here with the aim of spreading more awareness about ocean health and to motivate youngsters and elders alike to contribute towards a cleaner marine environment. Initially,he took the help of the Navy and Coast Guard to give the project a kickstart. “In the first two-three years,navy personnel participated in the cleanup and thus we had 24,000 volunteers in the first year itself. The numbers dropped after we took over completely but now,through websites and word of mouth,we have rebuilt the number. Last year,we had almost 35,000 volunteers,” he says. And this year,they are expecting to cross the 50,000 mark,with the cleanup in different cities like Pune,Orissa,Andhra Pradesh,Tamil Nadu,Goa,Mumbai,Gujarat,Himachal Pradesh.

Recently,a sister organisation of IMF was formed – Ocean Savers of India. This youth group is going all out in projecting the health of oceans to schools and colleges. “The idea is to spread awareness. In the cleanup,we will cover 33 sites in a systematic manner. There are data cards that are filled and sent to the Ocean Conservancy. These cards are in a statistical format and include number of items collected,like bags,caps,containers,beer bottles,plastic,rubber tyres,thermocol,syringes,tampons,condoms and so on,” says Karn H Ragade,senior vice president,Ocean Savers of India and District Coordinator,ICC Pune. On Sunday,Ragade,along with Commander Mukund Lele (Retd Indian Navy),co-coordinator for ICC India,conducted a briefing and presentation for volunteers of participating organisations.

Students of Stds VII-IX from 15-17 schools will participate along with other NGOs and clubs. “The goal is to motivate them but we end up getting motivated by their dedication and efforts,” Ragade adds. Abhilash Das,junior vice president of Ocean Savers of India,adds,”The youth is the future of the nation. It is up to us to start at the basic level and make a difference.” Das,who is a second year Computer Science student at D Y Patil College,has even made a documentary for IMF on the pollution of Pune’s rivers.

Commodore Vir has seen a growing awareness among people over the last eight years. He says,”Owing to our efforts as well as the efforts of other organisations,NGOs and even the PMC’s ban on plastic,people are now more informed about pollution and its harmful effects. In 2003,we collected 1000 bags of litter,mostly plastic. But after the cleanup,when my wife and I went around the areas,we felt that we could have collected an additional 2000 bags. But now the situation is improving and I’m very happy that the youth is motivated towards this cause.”

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