Inspired by the ‘Swachh Bharat’ mission of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, Sidharth Runwal, a 17-year-old student of B.D.Somani
International School is on a mission to improve the quality of life of
ragpickers and garbage cleaners in Mumbai through his non-profit organisation
Clean-Up Foundation.
The NGO aims to achieve
the objective through various activities targeted at improving and enhancing
the hygiene and sanitation factors around those who help in cleaning up the
city but themselves live in appalling conditions.
Runawal said, “The first
step towards improving the quality of life for the garbage cleaners of Mumbai
is to provide them with clean drinking water. It is ironic that the people who
clean the city every day live in such deplorable conditions.” He added that as
per the BMC report, the average garbage cleaner does not live for over 40
years. “They do not have access to fundamental necessities such as potable
water that are essential for survival,” he added.
“The Clean-Up Foundation
installed water purifiers at multiple Chowkis across Bandra, Khar and Santa
Cruz under the H/West Ward Office. This initiative ensured clean drinking water
is available for over 12,000 garbage cleaners in Mumbai,” said Runawal.
Source: DNA-23rd December,2017
