The Times of India 07.09.2010
Week-long 'Clean Delhi' drive kicks off
NEW DELHI: In an effort to spruce up the capital ahead of the Commonwealth Games, thousands of volunteers from the civil society took part in the `Clean Delhi- NCR Drive' drive on Monday. The week-long drive aims to create awareness among people in various parts of the city and sensitize them against spitting, littering, etc.
The drive started from Chandni Chowk, Jama Masjid, parts of west Delhi and Dwarka and will continue till September 11 at 41 strategic sites covering NCR. The main areas include the Games tourists route, market places, historical monuments, Qutub Minar, Khan Market, Dilli Haat, Nehru Place, New Delhi and Nizamuddin railway stations, among others.
A large number of volunteers from Art of Living, schools, colleges, NCC cadets, market associations, along with MCD employees, ragpickers and hawkers, took part in this endeavour for the city. They raised slogans such as "Mera shehar saaf ho, isme mera haath ho'', "Clean Delhi-green Delhi'' while picking up garbage and other waste material. The volunteers held placards urging shopkeepers, hawkers and residents to keep the city clean. Youth volunteers also conducted street plays for generating awareness.
An initiative of Art of Living, the campaign is supported by the Delhi mayor, MCD, NDMC, NDMA and NCC cadets. Said mayor Prithvi Raj Sawhney, "Art of Living is doing a lot of work. They are awakening the public and we support this endeavour.''
While in Chandni Chowk around 100 MCD karamcharis, 400 schoolchildren, 150 college students, 40 market associations and the mayor gathered to raise awareness, Jama Masjid saw a turnout of around 50 NCC cadets, 50 MCD karamcharis and over 150 students. In Dwarka, three sites were cleaned up on Monday by around 1,550 volunteers, including schoolchildren, and another six sites in west Delhi got around 3,920 people, including members of 42 RWAs. Art of Living also plans to install 400 dustbins both biodegradable and non-biodegradable at 41 spots in the city.
Schoolchildren seem to be spearheading this mass awareness movement with over 400 schools adopting sites for maintenance. The schools include Vasant Valley, MCD Primary School, Modern School (Vasant Vihar), Kendriya Vidyalaya, Jesus and Mary, DPS Mathura Road, Ramjas, DAV School, Bal Bharti, Amity School, G D Goenka, etc, and special schools Akshaypratishthan, Tamanna, Muskaan among others.
