During the last 10 days of 2023, as many as 250 garbage vulnerable points (GVPs) in Kozhikode turned into ‘gardens of love’. It happened during the annual residential camps under National Service Scheme (NSS) undertaken at as many schools.
Minister for Local Self-Government M.B. Rajesh had earlier called for the cleaning up of such spaces. The target was to make around 3,000 ‘Sneharamams’ across the State, and Kozhikode district topped the chart. “This is probably the first time that so many NSS units are working with a single goal in mind,” said M. Gouthaman, district coordinator of Suchitwa Mission.
The Sneharamam project was executed by the NSS units with the support of the respective local bodies and the Suchitwa Mission. The Mission contributed ₹5,000 to each unit. But many units spent much more to ensure that the gardens were of their liking, by raising funds through sponsorships.
The garden set up by the NSS unit of the Nochad Higher Secondary School near the Subhiksha outlet in Nochad grama panchayat is a case in point. “This place used to be a sewage dumping spot. The students have changed its face with several installations using eco-friendly objects such as discarded tyres and liquor bottles and converted it into a place where people can sit and relax,” said Mr. Gouthaman. The garden was opened by District Collector Snehil Kumar Singh.
The garden built on the banks of the Akalappuzha by NSS volunteers of the Palora Higher Secondary School with the support of Ulliyeri grama panchayat has become a popular spot among local tourists. The volunteers from Achuthan Girls’ Higher Secondary School converted an abandoned space at Beypore into a real park. They also roped in local residents for the execution of the project.
However, miscreants have not taken the changes well. The installations at Nochad were recently found destroyed.
Published - February 04, 2024 09:41 pm IST
