Hazaribag: Days after National Green Tribunal (NGT)’s rap, Hazaribag Municipal Corporation on Thursday launched a special drive at Okni pond with municipal officials, public representatives and sanitation workers joining hands to clean the premises and its adjoining public areas.Two days ago, NGT issued notices to deputy commissioner Hemant Sati and municipal commissioner Om Prakash Gupta over non-compliance of its directions to conserve the waterbody. The tribunal has also warned of initiating property attachment proceedings against the officials concerned.As the drive began, large swathes of accumulated waste were removed from the pond premises, pathways and adjoining public places. Municipal workers and public representatives participated in the work and also interacted with locals, urging them to contribute to keeping the area clean.Municipal commissioner Gupta said, “Efforts by the civic body alone would not be enough to make the city clean without public participation. If every person in every locality takes responsibility for keeping a small area around them clean, the entire city can become clean very quickly.” He appealed to residents not to dump waste at public places and to cooperate with cleanliness initiatives.Deputy mayor Avinash Yadav said that the objective of the drive was not only to keep Okni pond premises clean but also to create a sense of responsibility among residents towards cleanliness.
