For 27 days now, Dhiraj Parab has been waking up and setting out of his home for an unusual task. The 42-year-old environmental activist and mangroves crusader single-handedly cleans Jesal Park creek in Bhayander (East) every morning. On weekends he is joined in his drive by senior citizens and students.
¡°I will carry on with the clean-up whether anyone joins me or not. People should take up such initiatives in their respective localities,¡± said Parab, who bought gloves and gumboots to allow him to venture deep into the creek for his clean-up exercise.
BCCL
He first set out on his mission on the morning of September 9, a Sunday. Since that day, for two hours from 7.30am every morning, the Balaji Nagar resident clears the debris and garbage dumped into the creek.
¡°The municipality has been spending crores on the so-called per-monsoon nullah-cleaning and beautification of the chowpatty. But nothing is being done about destruction caused by the massive dumping of waste in natural water bodies,¡± said Parab, a freelance journalist.
Parab said the kind of waste found dumped into the creek has left him shocked. Other than the ubiquitous plastic, he has found bags containing outdated medicines, commodes, furniture and beddings. ¡°The number of jeans and saris dumped into the creek also came as a surprise to me,¡± said Parab, adding that educating people about proper disposal of old belongings is the need of the hour.
BCCL
Every morning, Parab says he manages to remove around 100 tonnes of garbage from the creek. The collected debris is then picked up by the Mira-Bhayander Municipal Corporation. Vijay Patil, a retired assistant municipal commissioner, who is also a resident of Jesal Park, has joined the clean-up exercise on a few occasions and ¡°spread the good word¡± among locals. There are four open spots in the creek which are used to dump waste. Parab said that putting up boards on the to spots warn people against destroying mangroves will act as a deterrent.
Parab is one of the petitioners in the wetlands case filed by NGO Vanashakti in the Bombay high court. Parab had also filed an application before the court on behalf of the Bombay Environmental Action Group (BEAG) on mangroves destruction in Mira-Bhayander.