MAWKYRWAT: Even after several appeals and notices from the government people still litter and dump garbage on roadsides.
While travelling around Mawkyrwat area, it was found that garbage is being disposed in the forest or roadsides even at some tourist spots thus polluting the environment.
Travelling to Mawkyrwat and Marshilong villages, disposal of waste can be witnessed and along the Mawten-Nonglang road.
People continue to indiscriminately throw garbage on the roadsides despite restrictions by the South West Khasi Hills district administration. The lack of civic sense has affected water bodies and major rivers of the district. Piles of plastics were found in Umsala, Rilang, Umngi and Kynshi rivers. People coming for fishing are also partly responsible for polluting these rivers as they mindlessly throw plastic in the water bodies.
In November 2015, the then DC had prohibited dumping of garbage.
Again in May 2018, the District Magistrate issued an order prohibiting throwing of garbage, including plastics, as it would destroy the environment and could also cause illness to the people of the area.
The Green Volunteers of South West Khasi Hills comprising mostly youths from different villages had in March 2019 organised a programme to clean the Umsala river from Photumnew, Mawkyrwat to Nongmyllam as well as the Umngi river in Balat as part of the celebration of the World Water Day.
“During the cleaning drive, heaps of plastics especially in Umsala at Photumnew were found by our volunteers,” Sywel Lyngdoh, a member of Green Volunteers said while adding that during the celebration of the World Environment Day, awareness programmes were conducted in eleven villages.
Lyngdoh informed that the Green Volunteers will meet the Deputy Commissioner, Isawanda Laloo, on Wednesday to raise the issue of littering in the district.
