Manipur,IMPHAL, January 28: A press release from the Manipur Cycle Club (MCC) has said that the body along with the Gorkha Jyoty Youth Club (GJYC) organized a monthly critical mass along with a river cleaning and awareness campaign on responsible picnicking on January 28 at the Hatikhuwa, Kanglatombi portion of the Sekmai river.
The event was participated by local youth club members and Panchayat members apart from 25 members of the MCC and its advisors, including Dr. RK Ranjan, Roy Laifungbam and Yambem Laba, the release said.
According to Ram Wangkheirakpam, president of the MCC, “The Sekmai picnic spot drew more than 500 cars during the peak season of January and the garbage generated in the course of their picnic trip are seen scattered all over the place. While knowing that a day’s effort cannot clean the river and its ecosystem, the team of MCC and GJYC went around and collected used polythene bags, water bottles, locally brewed liquor bags, broken whisky and beer bottles, washing powder and soap wrappers, potato chip wrappers, sanitary napkins, spoiled slippers and shoes, used plastic cups and plates, food leftovers, burned woods etc.” Saying that the garbage were picked up from both the river bed and the surrounding areas, the press release further added that picnickers were washing their cars on the river itself, thereby polluting the water with oil and other chemicals.
Adding that the effort of MCC and GJYC was to bring awareness about riverine ecosystem and how unrestrained and unregulated human activities can destroy the system through the downstream, the release said that MCC along with riverine based villages along all rivers will work on a list of Dos and Dont’s for picnics or other non-traditional use of Sekmai River in order to save it from further destruction.
