Dwarka has had an interesting history of civil participation, and residents coming together to keep the parks clean is in keeping with that spirit. People are seen picking up plastic bags, packets while out on walks.
And Green Circle, a local NGO, has been at the forefront of this movement.
President of Green Circle and a resident of Sector 6, V Selvarajan, said, “We started the campaign this year on the occasion of World Environment Day with our neighbourhood park in the sector. We are going to do it every weekend. People have responded well to the initiative and they are coming out to clean with us.”
In fact, people have made picking up plastic litter a practice during morning walks.
Vipan and Vipna Kumari, a couple from Sector 6, have been doing so since 2014.
“I started doing do in 2014, but discontinued after sometime because others were not okay with it. In 2017, my wife encouraged me to resume the practice. And ever since, we have been collecting plastic litter from Sector 6 park every Saturday for about two hours. Then, three four people joined us, but it still didn’t have the makings of a movement. But slowly, the initiative is gaining strenght.”
Similarly Federation of RWAs of Sector 9 (FORWAS) has been cleaning up DDA parks.
President of FORWAS, Advocate KS Bhati, explained, “What could be a better service than to keep our parks clean. Some of our members do it every day — and it sends out a really positive message to all.”
In Sector 14 neighbourhood park, residents of Radhika Apartments, along with RWA members, carry out the cleaning. Some residents do it every day, while others do it on weekends.
Public bank employee Mansukh Sharma, who led the initiative, shared, “This cleaning routine has become an integral part of our time spent in the park during morning hours.”
