When this team, wearing white T-shirts, gloves and masks, sets out on bikes in the town of Basavana Bagewadi in Vijayapura district, the residents can be assured that some part of their town is going to be spic and span in a matter of few hours. It may be anything: a road, a lake, a public place, government offices or even a hospital. In a way, they get their pristine white clothes dirty only to make the town cleaner.
Aptly named 'Jenugoodu' (meaning beehive in Kannada), this team works silently and diligently, much like the bees in a beehive. The team began functioning in August 2015 with 45 youngsters as its members. Today, it has more than 100 volunteers, who are from all walks of like. For cleaning drives, Jenugoodu specifically chooses government offices, hospitals and public places as these spaces tend to accumulate garbage on a continuous basis. Hence, the team visits these places week after week. Usually, after working for the entire week, one would like to take Sundays off and do nothing strenuous. But the members of this team are an exception. They start their activities as early as 5:30 am every Sunday and work well into the afternoon.
Every week, the place for the next week's work is decided. Upon deciding the place, a leader will be elected and the allotment of duties is put up in the team's WhatsApp group. Apart from doing the work, the team also creates awareness about cleanliness among general public and students.
In fact, the holy pond of Basavateertha of the historic Nandishwara Temple in the town, which was full of filth at one time, is now sparkling clean thanks to the dedicated efforts of this team. Their work has given a facelift to many places in the town like Basavamurthy Chowk, Ambedkar Chowk and other public places. Along with cleaning the place, the team also ensures proper disposal of garbage.
The team has painted walls and compounds of public places with environment-friendly and social messages. Moving beyond the arena of cleaning, the team members have donated infrastructure and saplings to educational institutions. One can also find benches installed by them in many public places of the town.
All the members of the team are treated equally, irrespective of their professional qualifications. In spite of the large amount of money involved in carrying out the tasks, Jenugoodu hasn't sought outside financial help. "The team is self-sustaining and the sole aim is to keep the town clean," says Pradeep Munjane, a volunteer. "Recognising our efforts, several people have donated cash and other useful items. Artists have volunteered to paint public places. All the help received in cash will also be dedicated to this cause," says Satish Kwati, another member.
In the days to come, the team has planned to organise environment campaigns in schools and carry out cleanliness drives in rural areas. In just one year, the team's efforts have proved that one doesn't have to depend on the government for every little thing. No wonder, by seeing the team's selfless and dedicated work, people from the town are coming forward to join hands to make their town a cleaner and healthier place. One can contact the team on 9739482881 or 9480644880.
(Translated by A Varsha Rao)
Aptly named 'Jenugoodu' (meaning beehive in Kannada), this team works silently and diligently, much like the bees in a beehive. The team began functioning in August 2015 with 45 youngsters as its members. Today, it has more than 100 volunteers, who are from all walks of like. For cleaning drives, Jenugoodu specifically chooses government offices, hospitals and public places as these spaces tend to accumulate garbage on a continuous basis. Hence, the team visits these places week after week. Usually, after working for the entire week, one would like to take Sundays off and do nothing strenuous. But the members of this team are an exception. They start their activities as early as 5:30 am every Sunday and work well into the afternoon.
Every week, the place for the next week's work is decided. Upon deciding the place, a leader will be elected and the allotment of duties is put up in the team's WhatsApp group. Apart from doing the work, the team also creates awareness about cleanliness among general public and students.
In fact, the holy pond of Basavateertha of the historic Nandishwara Temple in the town, which was full of filth at one time, is now sparkling clean thanks to the dedicated efforts of this team. Their work has given a facelift to many places in the town like Basavamurthy Chowk, Ambedkar Chowk and other public places. Along with cleaning the place, the team also ensures proper disposal of garbage.
The team has painted walls and compounds of public places with environment-friendly and social messages. Moving beyond the arena of cleaning, the team members have donated infrastructure and saplings to educational institutions. One can also find benches installed by them in many public places of the town.
All the members of the team are treated equally, irrespective of their professional qualifications. In spite of the large amount of money involved in carrying out the tasks, Jenugoodu hasn't sought outside financial help. "The team is self-sustaining and the sole aim is to keep the town clean," says Pradeep Munjane, a volunteer. "Recognising our efforts, several people have donated cash and other useful items. Artists have volunteered to paint public places. All the help received in cash will also be dedicated to this cause," says Satish Kwati, another member.
In the days to come, the team has planned to organise environment campaigns in schools and carry out cleanliness drives in rural areas. In just one year, the team's efforts have proved that one doesn't have to depend on the government for every little thing. No wonder, by seeing the team's selfless and dedicated work, people from the town are coming forward to join hands to make their town a cleaner and healthier place. One can contact the team on 9739482881 or 9480644880.
(Translated by A Varsha Rao)