123 Kolkata: Students from a private university in Kolkata joined hands with a walking tour guide to remove litter from a section of the Maidan on Saturday morning.
Soham Chakraborty, who takes pride in showing Kolkata's natural and architectural heritage to visitors, said "Maidan is the crowning jewel of Kolkata. When I showcase the Maidan to visitors, they are wowed by the expanse of green next to the central business district. Very few cities in the world have such an asset. While it fills me with pride to belong to a city that has the Maidan, it also causes a deep sense of embarrassment due to the litter that covers the green. I was thinking of ways to address the issue. The clean-up drive on Saturday is just the beginning. I hope to collaborate with other citizens who love the city, the Army that is the Maidan's custodian, and Kolkata Police and PWD that maintain the area. The Maidan needs periodic intervention. Multiple clean-up drives are needed in winter," said Chakraborty.
The clean-up campaign was scheduled after a nod from the Army. The 14 students from Amity University picked up 9 kg of litter that ranged from scraps of paper to styrofoam plates and cups and innumerable polybags.
While such drives will connect the young generation to the Maidan apart from keeping it clean, Chakraborty said one of the key reasons why there was so much litter in the Maidan was the absence of waste bins. "Waste bins should be installed every 50 m or so along the edge of the Maidan and along tree lines," he pointed out.