Sanitation strike: Noida’s Sector 51 residents hold cleanliness drive

Residents of Block E of the sector held a two-hour cleanliness drive on a Sunday morning

In the backdrop of sanitation workers’ strike in Noida, the local residents’ welfare association (RWA) conducted a cleanliness drive in E block of Sector 51 on Sunday morning.

The residents had held a similar drive a week earlier too. (HT File Photo)

Residents and RWA members gathered with brooms and dustbins at 6:30am and in the next two hours, cleaned up all the internal roads and pathways of the block. Scattered garbage heaps and horticulture waste were also collected and dumped in dustbins.

Residents said sanitation workers have not visited the sector since their strike began on May 17. They said the waste lying around had doubled, making the road shabby and keeping them indoors.

“All roads and parks were dirty due to the sanitation workers’ strike. People had stopped coming out for morning walks. So, we decided to hold a cleanliness drive. As long as strike continues, we have to manage cleanliness on our own,” said Sanjeev Kumar, general secretary of the local RWA.

He said that the block has as many as 400 residents. Other blocks of the society will be also cleaned in the days to come, whether or not the workers return, he said.

“This is the second time that the RWA has conducted a drive in Sector 51. Such initiatives create awareness and help everyone have a clean environment. Moreover, it also brings about social change as residents meet each other and share ideas,” said Anil Prakash, RWA president.

Federation of Noida RWAs (FONRWA) president NP Singh has asked all RWAs to start a weekly cleanliness drive under Swachh Bharat mission. He had asked the associations to clean their sectors after the Union government’s recent cleanliness ranking of cities was released.

As Noida does not have a municipal body, it was not a part of the survey. However, FONRWA took this opportunity to keep Noida clean as a part of the ongoing Swachh Bharat exercise.