Regular monitoring can help make lakes clean: Madhulika Chaudhary
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Madhulika Chaudhary, the 2019 National Water Award winner instituted by the Ministry of Water resources And Ganga Rejuvenation (GOI), Delhi, focuses on spreading the message 'My Earth is my Responsibility'. Under her environmental organisation, 'Dhruvansh', she has organised 200 campaigns to protect the environment and reduce pollution.
According to Madhulika, she became more aware when she moved to Singapore with her family. "When my kids complained at how difficult that it was for them to walk on the lawn barefoot, it surprised me. Whenever I switched off the AC, they started showing physical discomforts including difficulty in breathing and heart palpitations. Reality struck me and the thought of nature and the disconnected new generation started bothering me," said Madhulika.
Later she decided to bring back her children to India to provide them with a lifestyle connected to nature.
One of her most appreciated works was the cleaning of Neknampur lake, Telangana. According to her, the work was strenuous as she didn't receive any support for a year.
From her two-year experience as a research scientist in Central Electronics Engineering Research Institute, Pilani and eight-year experience in teaching she brainstormed a 'floating island' to rejuvenate the lake.
"The lake was filled with plastic wastes and weeds. Eight truckloads of garbage was cleared over 15 days. By implementing the floating treatment wetland(FTW) it helped improve the oxygen levels and clear excess phosphorus and nitrate content from the lake," she said. Madhulika also expressed dismay on how Ganapati idols are dumped in water after the celebrations.
When Madhulika visited the capital city to take part in the water summit organised by Haritha Keralam Mission she shared her future plans to Express."I recently paid a visit to Akkulam lake and observed that it is still in pathetic condition, I have plans to arrange volunteers and take up the challenge of cleaning it," she said. She believes regular monitoring can keep the lakes clean as it is a habit for people to dump waste.
"Taking up a lake is like taking up its surroundings too, including the people and schools," she added. Madhulika also suggested organisations conduct environmental summits outdoors.