KOCHI: A waste-free Kochi. That is what the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) is hoping to achieve as it joins hands with the Kochi Corporation, the district administration and 23 state departments to launch the ‘Green Cochin Mission’ on Friday.
In its pilot phase, the initiative will focus on Cochin Carnival, Kochi’s biggest annual year-end fest. But here is the best part. The DLSA, in association with Childline, will rope in school students to spread the message on the need to manage waste across the district. Already, District Collector S Suhas has asked the carnival organisers to adhere to green protocol during the event.
“The mission has been divided into three segments—pre-event, during event and post-event. The programme involving students will be carried out as part of the pre-event initiative,” said Saleena V G Nair, secretary (sub-judge), DLSA. She said to create awareness, class teachers in every school will be urged to teach the students about the merits of waste management.
District migrant medical officer Dr Akhil Manuel said students will be given a two-week assignment in which they will practise ways to reduce wastage of energy and learn the importance of segregating waste. Childline director Fr Jenson Variyath said around 2,000 to 3,000 students from schools in Fort Kochi will clean roads and streets in the area.
Roping in Kudumbashree
Kudumbashree units will be roped in to check the progress made by students, said Akhil. “To ensure that students understand the message and that every family here is practising it, we will engage around 16,000 members of various Kudumbashree units,” he said. “During the carnival, waste will be segregated on a daily basis. We have placed dustbins everywhere with markings so that waste does not get mixed up. Volunteers will be stationed near the bins to help people throw waste in the corresponding bins,” he said.
The post-event initiative will see people from 23 government departments and NSS volunteers converging on Fort Kochi beach to clean it, he said.