Mumbai : . As a meaningful expression to celebrate the Republic Day, over 500 students and parents of C P Goenka International School, Juhu came together to clean Juhu Beach. The students and parents formed smaller groups and covered the entire stretch of Juhu Beach. The students were joined by Ajit Maniyal, Secretary of BJP’s Mumbai wing, who participated enthusiastically in the campaign. The enthusiasm of school students was infectious and drew several civilians present at the beach. The initiative is a part of the Sensitise to Sanitise Campaign initiated by Habitat for Humanity India, a global non-profit organization dedicated to eradicating poverty by providing families in need with safe and affordable housing and sanitation solutions (toilets) .The School is collaborating with Habitat for Humanity in this initiative. C P Goenka International School was earlier known as Billabong High International School.

In a written statement, local MP, Poonam Mahajan, said, “The Clean India (Swachh Bharat) Campaign genuinely seeks to address the debilitating mindset of Indian’s apathy towards dirty public places and pollution. Clean India is about embracing the culture of cleanliness and embedding the virtues of godliness in the minds of our children and future generation of India. It is heartening to see these children participating so enthusiastically in this campaign.” Ajit Maniyal, Secretary of BJP’s Mumbai wing said, “I must thank Habitat for Humanity and CP Goenka International School for inviting me to be together with these lovely children. Indeed, there could not have been a better way to celebrate our Republic Day”.

The Principal, Padma Negi mentioned that the school gives high importance to the civic awareness among the students. She stated, “Civic awareness is the key to create good, responsible citizens of tomorrow. We truly appreciate the initiative of Swachh Bharat by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. We have introduced several other initiatives to inculcate the habit of maintaining a clean neighbourhood among our students”.

Habitat for Humanity is assisting the school authorities in these initiatives. Sanjay Daswani, Director at Habitat of Humanity mentioned that, “we recently conducted a workshop on Poverty Housing and Sanitation in the School and a 2-D art competition on the theme of Poverty Housing and Sanitation is being initiated whereby students and parents combine to create innovative ideas on ways to address this challenge. Also, students and their parents are encouraged to contribute in building sanitation units / toilets for the underprivileged. We believe that a holistic approach is required to meet the objective of The Clean India (Swacch Bharat) campaign namely Cleanliness & Sanitation”.

Habitat for Humanity has launched a “Rupee for Change” campaign among schools across India . Students are encouraged to contribute one rupee every day towards building one lakh sanitation units ( toilets) across India which is the objective of Sensitise to Sanitise campaign.

source : Lokesh Shastri