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September 4, 2005
Dear Preity aunty,
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Preity gets Shah Rukh Khan and Ness Wadias help to clean up the city after the floods and (right) Abeer Abhyankar in Chakachak
Pic: Sayed Sameer Abedi |
A few days ago, I heard that you, along with Shah Rukh Khan uncle, were sweeping the roads of Bandra so as to clean them for the rest of us.
You also put dustbins on the road for us. In my grandmothers film, Chakachak, my (screen) sister, six other friends and I start a campaign to clean our dirty playground, slowly involving adults in it.
Based on that experience, I have some suggestions that might help you in your efforts.
You are doing the right thing by sweeping the roads. But that is not enough.
Once you have swept them and collected the garbage, you should separate the wet garbage from the dry garbage. This means that dirt like banana peels and tea leaves should be kept in a pile different from waste like paper. I have learnt this from my grandmother (Paranjpye), who I notice does this regularly.
Once this process is complete, please hand this garbage to the government (Brihanmumbai Municipal Commission) who will take it away in a big truck.
You should stop people from littering and spitting in public places. If they continue to do it, the police should send them to jail.
Or maybe the police should just fine them. I feel very angry when I see people spitting on the road.
These days, I have been carrying special cards in my pocket. Each card says Puchkumama. I think whenever I spot someone spitting, I should give the card to him. This will be like an insult, because Puchkumama means that the person holding the card has the dirty habit of
spitting in a public place.
I know that there is a move to ban plastic bags in our city. I agree; they should be banned because they choke our drains. Tell people that they should use only cloth bags when they go shopping.
Also, Preity aunty, some other things need to be banned, like chewing gum. They spoil our teeth and create a mess. They are banned in my school (St Marys High School, Mazagaon); any boy who is caught with them is punished, though I dont how, exactly.
Our sea has become so dirty. Please tell people that they shouldnt throw rubbish into it. Garbage and chemicals are very harmful for the water and for fishes; they die because of them.
We should also stop creating noise pollution, especially during Diwali. My younger sister and I dont like firecrackers at all they are too loud. Sometimes, accidentally, they also burn trees. But we can only request people to stop playing with firecrackers, not force them. This is because lots of
people enjoy firecrackers, even if we dont.
While you and others clean Mumbai, also try and plant as many trees as possible. We definitely need more trees they provide us with food.
Preity aunty, our city is dirty, which makes us dirty.
Everyone has bad habits there is one boy in my school who never throws rubbish where it is supposed to go in the lunchroom in a big, blue dustbin. He just leaves empty packets of chips and other snacks littered around.
Also, when he goes to the bathroom, he doesnt use the flush. It is very annoying. If we can use everything and still keep it clean, then why cant he? And there are lots of people like him everywhere. People really should have common sense.
This is all that I have to say. I hope my suggestions help, and lots of people help you clean Mumbai. A good way to get help is simply to ask people. If I were cleaning the streets of Mumbai, I would ask all the residents of my building to help me, and
they in turn would get help from others, and so on.
Thanks, Preity aunty. Best of luck to you, Shah Rukh Khan uncle and all the others who are helping make Mumbai a better place to live.
Sincerely,
(Abeer Abhyankar)
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
- Forwarded by http://www.goa-world.com |
