The Meghalaya Integrated Mountain Development Initiative (MIMDI), the state chapter of the Integrated Mountain Initiative (IMI), organised The Himalayan Clean-up (THC) 2023 at Mawlingai village under Umsning block in Ri-Bhoi on Saturday.
This was part of a waste clean-up operation held in rural, semi-urban and urban locations across the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR), which was also held to draw the attention of the general public, governmental agencies and traditional institutions to the perils of non-biodegradable waste, especially plastic waste in our daily lives jeopardising the environment and health of the people.
The clean-up saw the wholehearted and enthusiastic participation of members of the Mawlingai dorbar, the residents of the locality besides MIMDI office bearers in cleaning up the area by collecting solid waste.
The volunteers then conducted waste and brand auditing of the collected waste in order to identify the major polluting brands attracting the provisions of the Extended Producer’s Responsibility (EPR) as laid down in the Solid Waste Management Rules.
Subhasish Das Gupta, MIMDI secretary, thanked the Dorbar Shnong for permission to conduct the clean-up at Mawlingai, outlined the objectives of the clean-up and elaborated on the perils of plastic pollution by drawing the attention of the gathering to the increased habit of use and throw resulting in waste pile up in our surroundings. He also referred to ‘Solutions to Plastic Pollution’ being the theme of this year’s World Environment Day, notwithstanding the national ban on single use plastic from July 1, 2022.
He also explained the importance of waste and brand auditing of the collected waste. Daniel Kharbangar of MIMDI read out the pledge towards a zero waste Himalayan region. Fifteen bamboo baskets were handed over to the village dorbar for placement at various strategic locations in the village for use as garbage bins.
The Secretary of the dorbar, Rishan Mawkdoh, called for a greater awareness and behavioural change in tackling the menace of single-use plastic in our day-to-day life. He urged the residents of the locality to shun the use of plastic and help to keep the village clean.
