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MANGALURU: Ever seen a man on the Mangaluru-Kochi National Highway, near the Nethravathi Bridge, every day standing for more than three hours, waving a placard? It has a purpose—he is pleading with people, not to dump waste into the river. Doing this tirelessly for more than a month is Nagaraj Raghav Anchan,43, coordinator, ocean plastic recycling, Hasiru Dala. His efforts seem to have paid off, as he can see positive changes.

He told TOI, that during a survey for an ocean plastic recycling project for Anti Pollution Drive (APD) Foundation and Hasiru Dala, along with Vanishree, about two months ago, he found the area near Kallapu bus stand as one of the hotspots for the dumping of garbage. “People travelling towards Mangaluru from surrounding areas, find it convenient to carry waste when travelling in a vehicle and throw it away at this point. Initially, I spent a few days watching people and trying to understand what was prompting people to carry waste all the way to this point. I then tried to educate them on how wet waste can be managed at homes,” he said.

Meanwhile, APD Foundation and Hasiru Dala jointly organised a six-day awareness campaign from 6 am to 9 am from January 18-23, at the Nethravathi Bridge, urging people not to throw waste into the river. “For me, the campaign did not end there, and I decided to continue standing near the bridge every day between 5.30 am and 9 am, after which I travel to Mangaluru for work. Waste, including plastic, is being dumped here for decades, and cleaning up this place properly, is definitely a challenge.

“On February 28, along with the support of the urban local body, we will be organising a cleanliness drive. The city corporation has assured to provide us with men and a vehicle. Dumping garbage at least till the time I am standing there has stopped, but few people manage to throw garbage late at night. We have asked the urban local body to install CCTV cameras at this spot, so that those who are dumping waste can be caught red-handed and penalised. We have also identified other similar spots in Mangaluru, and once CCTV cameras are installed here, I plan to stand with a placard at Kulur bridge,” said Nagaraj, a Bajal resident.