85th Bagmati Cleaning Campaign at Balkhu

बग्न थालिन् बाग्मती सुन्दरीभै हेर रमाई

स्वछतानै हाम्रो स्वास्थ जिन्दगीको हो कमाई !

एकता  हो ठुलो  बल  निरन्तरता  हाम्रो लक्ष्य

निरन्तरको कर्मले नै बन्नेछौ हामी दक्ष्य !!

                                                                        - जनार्दन अधिकारी

The Bagmati Clean Up Campaign at its 85th week mesmerised around Balkhu bride at today's fine morning. Over 1500 volunteers participated for the noble cause and reduced 20 tonnes of scarps from the river bosom.The participants demonstrated extraordinary patience to dip their hands in stinking fecal loaded water.

Crusaders cleaning the river

The river territory at Balkhu has been encroached by Squatter settlement or Sukumbasi since decades. The Squatters are slum dwellers settling on land without legal right, neither as tenants nor as owners. Technically, sukumbasi are people who do not own land anywhere in the country. According to Ministry of physical planning and works, the squatter settlement at Balkhu comprises of 296 households with population density of 1,300 person per ha with very poor basic livelihood facilities.

Volunteers cleaning around squatters

Pooh-pond from the squatters at the river bank

Noble resolution of improving Bagmati river started by handful number of aware  Nepalese citizens including right honourable chief secretary of Nepal, Lilamani Poudel' has advanced considerably. The chief secretary commenced that the Balkhu is one of the most polluted stretches of Bagmati river within valley. The river territory has been abused and was used as local dumping site since long time back. It received gallons of untreated filth and fouling scarps and the tireless drive has aroused civil consciousness to control further pollution of the river.

The volunteers cheered and danced in the victory of completing 85th crusade successfully.

Crusaders celebrating the victory

The 86th Crusade takes place in the same place next Saturday.

JAY BAGMATI

Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi in 84th Bagmati Clean Up Campaign at Balkhu

The Bagmati Clean Up Campaign aroused with the presence of Nobel peace prize winner Kailash Satyarthi between thousands of volunteers at this fine Saturday morning. Chief Secreatary Lilamani Poudel, Kishor Thapa, LP Bhanu Sharma and Dr. Raju Adhikari and other crusaders greeted the world Nobel Peace Prize winner at the verge of Bagmati river near Balkhu. Kailash Satyarthi cheered the volunteers swarm and congratulated for starting such a pronounced campaign for saving Nepalese spritual and cultural treasure, The Bagmati river.

The Crusaders along with Satyarthi cheering the mob

Approximately 25 tonnes of scraps got removed from the river banks today.The scraps were mainly the left over plastics, rags, household and industrial scarps. Volunteers commented that the scarps reappeared every time they pull since the scarps has been piled in the place since decades.

Chief Secretary clearing the iterating rags

 The MC of the day, Dr Raju Adhikari said that the Campaign initially was in the initiation of handful number of organisations but the continued appreciation has attracted over hundreds of organisations. According to Chief secretary over 700 organisations has been a part of the campaign and many which partcipate regularly as a Corporate Social Responsibility.

The Advertising Association of Nepal (AAN) team including Rajkumar Bhattarai, Narayan Kaji Shrestha and others expressed the dedication of the organisation has received positive energy and progress it has received for the organisation. 

Over 25 volunteers from ICIMOD under the leadership of director general Dr. David James Molden participated in today's ceremony. ICIMOD is regional intergovernmental organisation of 8 member countries serving the Himalayas since 1983. Similarly, Nijamati Karmachari Sangh of Anamanagar, Reyukai , Department of Environment Nepal Government and many more had gracious presence with large number of volunteer participation. 

Volunteers from ICIMOD posing for photographs

The chief executive officer of Kathmandu Metropolitan City office, Dhan Bahaur Shrestha, said that KMC has started a campaign to clean gullys, roads, public areas to make whole whole Kathmandu Valley clean and green.

The initiation of KMC for clean Kathmandu

The campaign possessed large participation of women and children of all age groups. Mahila Samuha, Aama Samuha, Womens initiative for environmental conservation, housewives and many others.

Women participating in river cleaning tumult 

Members of Mahila samiha posing for photograph 

Kailash Satyarthi belongs to the land of Ganga where similar Save Ganga Movement is in progress. The campaign is a widespread Gandhian non violent movement supported by saints, popular social activists across Indian states, Bihar and Uttarpradesh. The Ganga Bachao aviyan is widely supported by activists like Acharya Jitendra, Nigamanand, Prof. G. D. Agrawal, Narendra Damodardas Modi  and many other religious leaders, spiritual and political, scientists, environmentalists, writers and social activists. 

Saints movement for Ganga Bachao Aviyan

The Mesasge: Save Ganga

The tasteful presence of Singer Krishna Kadel from Indreni club  whistled the crowd. He created instant folklares and sanitation  messages in his lyrics. He sattaired the inability to protect Bagmati since begining yet conveyed hopes to regain the river back by the ongoing initiation.

The 85th cleaning is scheduled bit downstream of the river at Balkhu. 

Courtesy
http://newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/2012/6/18/362-save-river-ganga-campaign-activists-protest-at-mahatma-gandhis-memorial.html
http://en.newsbharati.com/encyc/2012/6/18/saints-and-activists-protests-in-delhi-to-save-holy-ganga.aspx

The 83rd Bagmati Clean Up Campaign

बाग्मतिको पानी  हामीलाई  सफा देख्ने मन्छ

सबै  एकजुट भयौ भने  प्युन मिल्ने बन्छ,

हामीले वास्ता नगरेत येस्तै हुन्छ जुगौ

प्रतेक हप्ता सफाई गर्न बाग्मतिमा पुगौ !!

Cheering the mob: Singers singing during the campaign

The above is a part of lyrics of theme song of Bagmati Clean Up Campaign by Rajendra Bhandari  and Radhika Hamal. The presence of both the singers fueled today's campaign. 

In today's foggy morning, over 900 volunteers clustered at Teku and collected 29 tonnes of scraps primarily composed of abandoned household wastes. 

 Over 300 slum volunteers from 'Sukumbasi Jagaran Basti' joined the campaign showing patience and cordination to help to the the campaign motive. Many slum children seemed helping their parents. The tiny hands collected scarps and hopped in music. American novelist James Baldwin says that 'Although Children seem not listening to their parents, they never fail to imitate them'. So, the local initiation will help to educate children regarding manners to keep city clean.

Presence with their parents: Slum Kids in the campaign

The slums have been a concern for Bagmati river improvement since they reside illegally at the river banks. According to Nepal government, 8000-10000 people live as slums in Bagmati river bank claiming  to be  landless. Not only the Bagmati, slums are growing in Manahara, Dhobikhola and Bishnumati rivers where around 15,000 to 20,000 live illegally. Often there is clash between the slums and government. The government's effort to construct an UN park in Thapathali has faced a jolt due to squatter settlement. However, the massive and cardial involvement of the slums in todays campaign signifies their positive response and flexibility to restore the Bagmati river.

As usual, large number of  women volunteers could be seen. They performed every tasks from collecting scraps from the river, river banks, queuing in line to passed garbage filled Thunche to the garbage collecting vehicle and many more.

The advancing women participation

Dr Raju Adhikari, the MC of the day announced the presence of Kailash Satyarthi, an Indian children right advocate and an activist against child labour in the campaign next week. He is awarded with Nobel Peace Prize of 2014 in conjunction with 14 year old activist Malala. He founded save the childhood movement and he acted to protect the rights of more than 83000 children from 144 countries.  Similarly, The founder of art of living, Sri Sri Ravisanker visited the campaign upstream at Tilganga on January 2014.

Kailash Satyarthi, Nobel Peace Prize winner for 2014

For next weeks move, the volunteers are requested to be present at the same place at Teku near the confluence of Bishnumati and Bagmati river at Lalitpur side.

जय बाग्मती!!!

Will 'GANDHIGIRI' bring Bagmati river back to life?

Bagmati river has been abused since decades. It has upholded all toxic waste water, the  gallons of untreated filth and tonnes of scarps piled since years. Will the Bagmati river, no better than sewer lines, get back to life with handpicking of scarps by volunteers? How long will 'THE GANDHIGIRI' take to heal the haemorrhaging river?

As in the natural state, the Bagmati river was juvinile and beautiful holding vast biodiversity and irrigating fertile floodlands of Kathmandu valley. Will the collection of 50 tonnes of scraps per week bring back natural flows in the river, where above 10 meters pile bleeding with lechate and hundreds of gallons of untreated filth is discharged? Bagmati river is no better than sewer at most of its reaches with no dissolved oxygen and high ammonia levels. The water is very toxic for sustaining any life at most of the urban areas. 

The restoration history of worlds greatest rivers has an history of setting criteria for improvements. Let us see an example of river Thames. Three criteria for improvement were established. Firstly, that the water must sustain fish at all stages of tides. Secondly, it must support fauna on the mud bottom and thirdly, all toxic and non-biodegradable waste must be excluded from the river.

The Thames river was amongest the most polluted rivers in the 1800s and the restoration journey has led the river now to attract more than 10,000 birds during wintering times and rehosts the Salmon, trout and even seals.

The great stink of  London( source: wikipedia)

Do we have set any criteria for Bagmati river improvements? Where will this handpicking of few tonnes of garbage lead- the clean river or another bit longer but failed attempt to restore the river?

82nd Bagmati Cleaning movement at Gusingal,Teku

जब सुध्रन्छ मान्छे अफैभित्र  

तब बन्छ बातावरण पवित्र !!

The Bagmati Clean Up crusade, in its 82nd week at Gusingal, Teku turned on vivacious when the Right Honorable Chief Secretary of Nepal government, Lilamani Poudel, swayed National flag at the dais shaking his legs along the persuading song on the glory Bagmati river. The crowd stirred up along the song and danced with happiness of collecting over 32 metric tonnes of trashes along the riverside. Over thousand participants representing different organisations but with cohorted efforts to save the magnificent river.

The crusaders cheering the crowd

Volunteers from different backgrounds united for common objective

Kathmandu city is suffering from garbage after the rapid urbanization of valley after the dawn of democracy in 2045 B.S. The garbage of the growing people was dumped carelessly at the river banks.This practice has left about 10 meters of pile of garbage at the Bagmati river bank at Gusingal. The volunteers with exceptional devotion pulled up the garbage as much as they could. However, it seems that the ageold, and piled since decade wastes need an strategic intervention rather manual handpulling efforts.Nevertheless, the hand pulling and manual efforts has generated tremendous self awareness to avoid further dumping of the scarps at the river banks.

Piles of previously dumped garbage at the river bank

The remarkable campaign showed large participation form women volunteers. Apart from the household chores, the women have shown considerable efforts to rehabilitate the degraded rivers. Kofi Annan once said that 'there is no tool for development, more effective than the empowerment of women'. since awareness in a woman is the awareness in the whole family and society .

Young ladies contributing to clean the adulterated river

The M.C of the day, Dr. Raju Adhikari ended up the days move sharing one of the hilarious news he encountered when he was  at Fukuwoka, Japan to receive the  Asian Township Award 2014 by UN HABITAT to Bagmati Clean Up Campaign. The story started as an untrained foreign national littered on one of the Japanese road and the crows collected the litter with their beaks and threw it in city litterbins. The story was comical yet very motivational to mainstream the crowd towards the campaign objective of being changed ownself to change others.