Volunteers clear 1,750 kg of plastic waste from Velliangiri Hill in Coimbatore
As many as 35 volunteers, in the age group of 18-55, came for the cleanliness drive and collected over 1,750 kg of plastic waste including water bottles and food wrappers on June 8.
The forest department had granted permission to devotees to trek on the hill as the Lord Velliangiri Aandavar Temple is situated on the seventh hill.
While the temple is under the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment (HR&CE) department, the forest department permits treks from February to May.
During the trekking period between February 1 and May 25, over 2.5 lakh devotees are estimated to have trekked the hills. This huge footfall brought with it the menace of plastic waste, despite the forest department's initiatives to curb plastic in the area.
B Hari Kumar, a fitness coach who trekked the hill over 102 days, called on volunteers through his social media page to partake in the cleanliness drive. Volunteers from across the state participated in the drive on Sunday and collected the plastic waste from the foothills to the third hill, a 3 km stretch.
Hari Kumar told TNIE, "To prevent plastic dumping on the hill, the forest department affixes stickers on plastic bottles carried by those who come for trekking and collect Rs 20 per bottle. The devotees can collect Rs 20 after returning the empty plastic bottle. However, some of them throw the bottles during the trek in the reserve forest area. To clean up the plastic bottles and plastic covers, I sought the forest department's permission. They have given three Sundays for the work. On June 8, the first Sunday, we collected 1,750 kg of plastic waste with the support of the forest guards."
He said as many as 18 out of 35 volunteers came from Chennai, Salem, Tirunelveli and other districts. "They have come forward for the social cause and dedicated a day for the work. We started work at 7.45 am and completed by 4 pm. We handed over the segregated waste to the Coimbatore city corporation. Due to the elevation and distance, we have invited young volunteers for the next two Sundays."
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