more-in In keeping with the Prime Minister’s Swachhata Hi Seva movement under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, officers of the sea patrolling unit of Customs, on Thursday, carried out a mass cleaning drive along the Beypore coastal area. Large quantity of plastic and other non-degradable waste was cleared from the Beypore estuary during the half-day drive launched early morning. Customs Superintendent M. Prakash said there were around 40 officers and staff who joined the drive, which marked the Gandhi Jayanti observance. “We initiated it on the basis of a directive from Customs Commissioner Sumeet Kumar and there was Assistant Commissioner E.P. Joy Thomas to take the lead role on the field,” he said. Using a net, the patrol squad collected huge quantities of floating plastic and biodegradable waste. Though the decayed slaughterhouse waste and rotten fish doubled the risk, the cleaning squads continued the effort, gathering the maximum quantity, till the end of the drive by 12.30 p.m. The officers also organised an awareness campaign for the fishers and local community on the impact of poor waste management on the nature. The hazardous nature of plastic waste and its impact on the environment was in focus. Customs engineer Rajesh Parashar, inspector M. Deepak, and skipper mates K.T. Francis and P. Unnimoyi were among those who coordinated the drive.

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