Over 1000 school students from Bijnor, joined hands with the 40-member team of Mission Gange, a joint initiative of Tata Steel Adventure Foundation (TSAF) and (NMCG) to raise awareness about waste management and Ganga cleanliness through a month-long rafting expedition.
The expedition is led by Tata Steel Adventure Foundation Chief Ms. Bachendri Pal, the first Indian woman to scale Mount Everest. The expedition began on October 5, 2018 from Haridwar and will be traversing around 1500 kms via rafting. The journey, encompassing eight major towns including Bijnor, Farrukhabad, Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi and Buxar, will conclude in Patna on October 30, 2018.
Prior to the kickoff, Mission Gange team met and interacted with the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on October 4 in New Delhi.
The Mission Gange team reached Bijnor on October 9, 2018. The team was camping here till morning of October 11 post which they headed for the next stoppage at Farrukhabad.
The support received at Bijnor has been overwhelming with the participation of over 1000 students in the Prabhat Feri to spread cleanliness awareness. The team collected 2 tonnes of waste from the river banks and village surroundings. A total of 4 tonnes of waste has been collected in two days.
“The team morale is at its best and we are off to a terrific start. While we are keen to reach out to every member of the local communities, it is particularly encouraging to see school and college students participating in such large numbers to clean the Ganga,” said TSAF Chief and ‘Mission Gange’ expedition leader Ms Bachendri Pal.
Ms. Pal stressed on the importance of the involvement of the local population for the success of the mission and the long-term objectives of the Indian Government’s Namami Gange initiative.
TSAF has brought together a diverse and industrious team of 40 individuals (20 women and 20 men) including eight mountaineers, who have summited Mt. Everest, and 26 Tata Steel employees. Besides, professionals from backgrounds as diverse as engineering, environmentalists, science etc. are part of the expedition team that is prepared to meet all the challenges that they may encounter during the expedition.
The team, during its stay in various towns along the course, will carry out cleanliness drives at Ghats and surrounding areas, visit schools and institutions to create awareness on waste management, pollution in Ganga and climate change.
