Vihar Lake

Versova Beach clean-up

plastic waste

Afroz Shah

Mithi River

Mufaddal Saifuddin

Seven months afterturned his attention tofollowing the Versova Beach clean-up that went beyond 100 weeks, a cleanliness revolution has begun in a slum colony near the river. Through the week, occupants of 6,000 homes in the Filterpada slum colony near Vihar Lake – the source of Mithi – meticulously collect plastic waste and hand them over to Shah and his volunteers on Sunday, who in turn send these to the recycling units.The result of not dumping plastic waste into the river at its source is amazing: already, 1.25 km of the 18-km-long Mithi has been cleared of plastic.On an average every Sunday, Shah and his volunteers send 25 gunny bags filled with plastic to the recycling units. It took nine months of rigorous counselling and pleading with the slum-dwellers who are now convinced that cleaning Mithi is as much their initiative as it is of Shah’s.“We started visiting the Filterpada slum colony every Sunday around 5 am, asking residents to just wash whatever plastic they had, such milk packets and biscuit sachets, and keep these aside. Gradually we trained them into cleaning plastic and segregating waste. Now they’re completely involved in the campaign,” Shah told Mumbai Mirror.Aqib Sheikh, a resident of Filterpada, said the movement has spread within the slum colony to such an extent that residents were now monitoring the clean-up drive’s progress on the daily basis “We have been trained by Shah and his team in cleaning plastic and segregating garbage. We are fully in it and want to see the river clean. Every Sunday we keep the plastic waste outside our homes for Shah’s volunteers to take away,” Sheikh said.Shah has explained to slumdwellers the concept of ‘circular economy’ which is aimed at minimising waste and making the most of resources. “Soiled and contaminated plastic is not accepted in recycling centres and they end up in landfills. Hence, it was important to train the residents to clean the milk pouches and other plastic waste that we can pick up every Sunday. This slum, housing around 30,000 people, is located near the spot where Mithi originates and without their support, the river cannot be cleaned,” he said.The number of volunteers for the Mithi clean-up has swelled considerably and includes members of the Dawoodi Bohra community who have been turning up at Filterpada every Sunday.Taikhoom Mohiyuddin of the Burhani Foundation (India) said that it was the instruction of the community’s spiritual leader, Dr Syedna, that Bohris strive to reduce plastic and food wastage across all its centres. “It’s been 31 weeks now that members of the Dawoodi Bohra community are supporting Afroz Shah in the mission to clean the beaches and rejuvenate Mithi River,” Mohiyuddin said.