MUMBAI: On the eve of World Environment Day , nearly 2,000 volunteers, including schoolchildren, turned up to remove the plastic filth that the sea had washed ashore on a 3-km stretch at Versova beach. It was the 87th weekend since Versova residents, led by lawyer Afroz Shah , along with the civic body, began cleaning the beach. On Sunday, they removed more than 160 tonnes of trash.

Joining in the largest clean-up to celebrate World Ocean Day on June 8, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and its India head Vijay Samnotra, Maharashtra Maritime Board and Lions each contributed 100 coconut trees for a plantation drive along the beach, which saw politicians pitching in for a cause they have now taken a shine to. A private bank brought in 1,000 volunteers, while a Mazgaon ship care company brought along 80 employees. Among the volunteers were members of a youth organization, the All India Plastic Manufacturing Association, Lions International, Rotaract, Rotary, and class XI students of Mount Mary High School in Goregaon.

So far, said Shah, over 5.6 million kg trash has been cleared. “We will continue the clean-up and not rest till we free our ocean and beaches of marine litter,” Shah told TOI. Many, including Shah, were fasting for Ramzan.

Speaking with TOI from Nairobi, UNEP chief Erik Solheim said, “The UN will continue to support the cause of clean seas in India and raise environmental awareness. It needs greater institutional measures and policy changes to ensure plastic is reduced and replaced with better alternates.” Praising Shah and volunteers, Solheim added, “In the past, a campaign to reduce emissions that was causing ozone layer depletion was a success story. We hope the fight against plastic ocean litter that began in Versova could head that way.”



In Video: 160 tonnes filth removed from Versova beach