Clean work - Gulf Today - Short Take Dt 11 October 2014

Clean work

We did It! That was the feeling that joyously kept overflowing in our mind at around 2pm last Saturday.

While boarding on the plane to Bangalore from Abu Dhabi for Eid holidays, I had set some clear plans to act upon my arrival there.

Prior to my departure, I had messaged friends and well-wishers through email and social media about the cleaning of a highly-used pedestrian over bridge built an year ago over the Whitefield Railway crossing.

It was built after a Herculean media and public effort to highlight the difficulties and dangers of people getting killed often while crossing dangerously. Once built, the scenario changed. As any other public utility items, no one cared for it.

A handful of us, including my family and close friends, started the campaign at around 9am.

Not used to such acts, we had no idea how it would progress. However, we were prepared with brooms, garbage bags, gloves, cleaning clothes, bleaching powder, and other necessary items. We kept few brooms here and there on the stretch that anyone interested could join us.

As we progressed, Anand Sivaram, Manager of the Whitefield Railway Station and his staff joined us as also a few members of Kadugodi Police Station.

It was indeed an experience of a special kind.

We received “Thank you”, “Good Job” and also Thumbs up signs from many people who used the bridge during the time we were cleaning.

It was nice to see unknown people readily volunteering and taking the broom from our side and do cleaning work for some time. As a coin has two sides, there were those who passing negative comments too!

At the end of our effort, we landed up with 8 huge garbage bags full of leaves and other carelessly thrown away items on the sky walk. A sad thing was that that people who saw us cleaning and progressing ahead, walked further and threw paper and other waste without any civic concern.

Everyone should contribute to the welfare of the community, wherever we are.

Ramesh Menon 

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Gulf Today - Short Take Dt 11 October 2014

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