BHUBANESWAR: In an effort to encourage citizens to protect the state’s vast coastline as a shared responsibility, the Odisha government on Saturday launched a mega coastal clean-up drive across its beaches.
The drive was organised by the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the state Forest, Environment and Climate Change department on the occasion of International Coastal Cleanup Day 2025.
The drive was marked with a large-scale event at Puri’s Blue Flag beach, drawing the participation of public representatives, officials, students and citizens with a shared commitment towards environmental protection. Forest, Environment and Climate Change minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia stressed that cleanliness and sustainability required the cooperation, effort and determination of all. “Odisha’s natural heritage, from Similipal’s biodiversity to the state’s 480-km-long coastline, needs to be protected as a shared responsibility,” he emphasised, calling upon all to work together towards environmental protection and cleanliness as a collective mission.
Fisheries and Animal Resources Development minister Gokulananda Mallik, Puri MP Sambit Patra, former MP and noted actress Jayaprada and other delegates along with around 1,500 students cleaned the beaches in the pilgrim city and took part in a signature campaign along with other awareness activities.
OSPCB member secretary Uma Nanduri said the coastal clean-up drive was taken up in at least eight beaches across the state, including Gopalpur and Paradip. All 18 Marine Police stations in the state also joined the drive and carried out clean-up activities along the coastline as well as some uninhabited islands. Pipili MLA Ashrit Pattanayak, Satyabadi MLA Om Prakash Mishra, MoEFCC joint secretary Rajat Agrawal, PCCF and HoFF Suresh Pant, PCCF (Wildlife) Prem Kumar Jha, Puri collector Dibya Jyoti Parida and SP Prateek Singh were also present.