The Hindu : Kerala / Kochi News : Taking the message of cleanliness to students and their families

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Thursday, Jul 12, 2007
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Kerala

Kerala - Kochi

Taking the message of cleanliness to students and their families

Staff Reporter

KOCHI: Making students aware of the need to reduce garbage production and help spread this message among other members of their family is the goal set by Clarion, a common platform for civic movements, for its intensive campaign on cleanliness.

Inaugurating the project at SRV High School, K. Narayana Kurup, chairman, Wage Board for Working Journalists and Non-Journalists, said Kochi was littered with garbage. Its administrators lacked the vision and the long-term planning to cope with the burgeoning population, which had reached the levels of a metropolitan city. There were smaller cities in the world that generated more garbage than what Kochi did but they did not face a similar crisis, he said.

The administrators had not thought of generating products from garbage, Mr. Kurup said.

He distributed dustbins to health inspectors selected from among the students. They, along with health assistants, will ensure cleanliness on the school premises.

There were plans to conduct workshops on health and cleanliness once every three months for students, said Father Roby Kannanchira, director, Chavara Cultural Centre and chairman of Clarion. In his keynote address, C.K. Ramachandran, former professor of medicine, Kozhikode Medical College, said Kochi was one of the most polluted cities in the world, according to latest studies.

Dr. Sabhapathi of IMA; S.K. Ramachandran, senior medical administrator, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences; K.V.P. Krishnakumar and David Parambithara, councillors; Rosamma, Principal, SRV Higher Secondary School; Ramesh Mohan P.P, Headmaster, SRV High School; and Jose Ambazhakadan, secretary, Junior Red Cross, spoke.

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