The Hindu

Mangalore, Sep 21: For the students of some schools and some NCC cadets, all roads led to beaches here on Saturday. It was not for a picnic but to make the beaches look better.

As many as 1,600 students and about 50 cadets studying in colleges were brought by buses to three beaches from different parts of the city.

On the Panambur beach, they piled up more than 50 huge carry bags of garbage within the first thirty minutes. Volunteers from a private firm collected these bags from students and took them to a waiting lorry of the Mangalore City Corporation.

In the next one hour, the children cleaned most parts of the beach. “It is about 80 per cent clean,” said the Coast Guard official, C.V. Totad, who was coordinating the event. He said children were enthusiastic. But the exercise had to be stopped as the atmosphere was getting hotter by the minute, he added.

Besides Panambur beach, the Tannirbhavi and Surathkal beaches were also cleaned by the children on Saturday. They were all given snacks and soft drinks.

Mr. Totad said students from NMPT School, Vidyadayini, NITK High School and NCC Battalion from Valentia took part in the cleaning operation.

The Regional Transport Office had provided four vehicles for the purpose. The Mangalore City Corporation had stationed adequate number of vehicles to transport the garbage.

The beach cleaning was organised by the Coast Guard between 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. It was aimed at creating awareness among children and public about the need to maintain cleanliness on beaches.