SHILLONG: Phase 6 of Operation Clean-Up in Umkaliar on Saturday was also observed as International White Cane Day which actually falls on October 15 every year.
Visually impaired students of Jyoti Sroat School for the blind and Bethany Society participated in cleaning up the River Umkaliar which joins the Umkhrah and has been the target of Operation Clean-Up since it kicked off on August 8 this year.
On this special occasion Amway India Enterprises Private Ltd teamed up with Bethany Society and provided refreshments to the 200 strong volunteers who participated in the cleaning drive.
Amway has been a long term partner of Bethany Society and was represented by Paolomi Bhattacharjee.
Around 200 volunteers comprising the visually impaired, some as young as 6 or 7 years, took part in the cleaning drive with their white canes.
Bob Marek from the University of Poland and a friend of Bethany Society was also present.
Marek arrived in SHillong with the intention of training the visually impaired on the theme of ‘Hence they all empty their garbage into the river’s hungry fingers’, owing to the fact that the blind are more attuned to tactile stimulation.
Women’s College, Martin Luther Christian University, Bethany Society and environmental warriors comprising MakeSomeoneSmile, The Green Signal, City Hut Dhaba, Bamboo Hut, Jiva, Radio Mirchi’s RJ, Nicky J and The Shillong Times undertook the 3-hour cleaning drive, leaving the river in a much cleaner state before the cleaning started.
This time, a team led by former Ambassador, Rudy Warjri undertook an awareness campaign to sensitise the residents along the river.
It may be mentioned that a tributary of the Umkaliar flows from Umpling along with all the garbage.
Umkaliar itself flows through Nongmynsong but the team found out that garbage collection trucks don’t usually reach the last mile where these residents live hence they all dump their garbage into the river.
They were also told that the fish and vegetable vendors from Nongmynsong dump their garbage into the river and that interestingly enough, the residents don’t know who their Rangbah Shnong or Rangbah Dong are.
A couple of people from Nongmynsong said that there was an announcement by the Dorbar Shnong that there would be a cleaning drive but apart from those few, none responded.
However, it was learnt that the Umkaliar area has a separate Dorbar named after it (Umkaliar Dorbar) and that the secretary of the Dorbar, Samborlang Diengdoh, has been attending all cleaning drives.
Umkaliar Dorbar headed by the Rangbah Shnong, T Warjri, includes areas in and around the bridge, the MES compound up until the border with Demseiniong and has been given the Sanad or permission by the Syiem of Mylliem since 2014.
This cleaning drive has relied on support by the Government. The JCB used to pull out all the garbage lodged in the river bed was provided by the Public Works Department.
The DIPR provided the sound system and the Shillong Municipal Board has been providing excellent service of transporting the garbage to Marten.
