by Mayukh Goswami

Mangaldai :  On the eve of the celebration of the ‘Dipawali’, the festival of light , the Mangaldai Municipal Board authority in collaboration their wing of the National Urban Livelihood Mission and the District Administration in a welcome move  has taken up a series of public awareness programmes for pollution and risk free Green Dipawali celebration surrounding the municipal area . As a part of this different initiative a mass rally was taken out in Mangaldai town on Monday .Nearly  two thousand five hundred women, mostly the members of Area Level Federation (ALF) of self help groups (SHG) in eye catching  green attire took part in the ‘Green Rally’ throughout the main thoroughfare of Mangaldai . “Say no to crackers, say no to sound and air pollution, maintain clean and green environment’ were the slogans they raised which were also displayed in various banners and placards. Deputy Commissioner Ashok Kumar Barman ceremonially flagged off the rally from the Municipal Board entrance in presence of several prominent dignitaries including  Mangaldai legislator Guru Jyoti Das, Additional Deputy Commissioner cum Executive Officer of Mangaldai Municipality Board (MMB) Pankaj Chakravarty , Chairman Pratap Bordoloi , Mangaldai Revenue Circle Officer Dipsikha Saikia , Vice Chairman  and elected ward commissioners of the Board among others. In his inaugural address Deputy Commissioner observed the initiative of the Municipal authority to be an unique one which would spread the message of celebrating the Dipawali with  traditional earthen lamps in stead of objects including fire crackers , plastics etc  which may create any kind of pollution to the environment . “Most of the people in our feel the necessity of celebrating the festival in a pollution free green manner but they hesitate to come forward and today this hesitation has been overcome by the people of Mangaldai town and from Mangaldai we can spread the message to whole of the State .” , he opined .The rally was followed by a colourful  competition of ‘Rongoli’ along the bank of the ‘Mangaldai Borpukhuri’  , distribution and planting of saplings and drawing contest among students on the specific topic etc .