Sundays in Goa are usually for rest and long lunches. But a growing number of youngsters are trading this for gloves and garbage bags, spending their mornings cleaning beaches, plateaus and village roads. This weekend, a group organised a clean-up hike at Socorro Plateau near Porvorim in North Goa, drawing people of all ages. Similar drives are now common across the state — from Morjim Beach to Betalbatim Beach — with citizen groups leading regular efforts.
For Samira Fernandes from Raia, Sunday begins at 6.30am. For 30 minutes, she cleans the street outside her home. “Our house is clean, but the street is filthy,” she says. Cycling collective Bicycle Goa recently combined a ride with a clean-up at Betalbatim Beach. “We were surprised that over 10 people showed up,” says organiser Amron Silva. The group funded gloves, garbage bags and refreshments themselves.
Volunteers say litter left by visitors is extensive — broken bottles, plastic cups, paper plates and even spoiled food. “It’s unpleasant, but someone has to do it,” says participant Aleesha Naik.
Dr Ashish Narvekar, who organises regular drives, says social media boosts turnout. “We post online and get people from across Goa. This is great motivation for us,” he adds, who hosts two clean up drives a month.
He recently hosted a clean up event with Natasha Parekh at the Socorro Plateau. Over 100 volunteers were a part of the clean up intiative. “We covered nearly a third of the area and collectec over 250 kilos of trash, filling more than 120 bags with plastic, bottles and other dry waste. The waste was transported to the government-operated material recovery facility in Saligaon, ensuring responsible recycling and further processing,” says Natasha.
