Air Pollution
Eastern Naval Command Celebrates World Environment Day
In a bid to combat air pollution, the Indian Navy has been taking several steps like planting trees, using electric scooters and carts and conducting awareness camps
Visakhapatnam: The World Environment Day was celebrated by various units and establishments under Eastern Naval Command at Visakhapatnam, West Bengal, Odisha and Tamil Nadu with the theme ‘Air Pollution’ on Wednesday. Environmental protection has been declared as one of the key result areas in Indian Navy and Eastern Naval Command. In order to curb air pollution, the command has instituted various measures to restrict the burning of waste in and around Naval areas, read a statement.
In addition, regular plantation drives are conducted on various occasions to ensure naval commitment towards a green and clean environment.
“In this regard over 10,000 saplings have been planted in the past year by various units under East Naval Command. The headquarters is keeping a close watch on the Ambient Air Quality standards in and around naval units at Visakhapatnam by using portable Ambient Air Quality Monitoring System (AAQMS) and any spike in the air pollution is brought to the notice of the Pollution Control Board towards early action,” the statement said.
Moreover, the use of electric scooters and carts are being promoted in addition to regular PUC (Pollution Under Control) for the government as well as hired vehicles to curtail vehicular pollution in and around naval areas.
On Wednesday, various units under the Command showed commitment towards environmental protection with emphasis on air pollution. Various activities were planned to spread awareness amongst naval fraternity about air pollution. The plantation drive was conducted in all the units to encourage the naval community towards a clean and green environment.
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Besides this, various other activities like workshops, lectures, seminars, photography and painting competitions were conducted to spread awareness about the theme. Naval establishments at Tamilnadu, Adyar, Parundu and Kattaboman undertook mass plantation drives and conducted lectures for naval personnel and families to stress upon the ill effects of air pollution and methods to control it. The statement added,
No vehicle day was also observed to promote the use of public transports and cars pooling towards the reduction in vehicular pollution. INS Netaji Subhas at Kolkata and INS Chilka at Barkul, Odisha which were recently affected by the Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘Fani’ had taken this opportunity to restore the green cover by undertaking mass plantation drives with the help of service personnel and families. Cleanup drives, awareness lectures, and competitions for children were also conducted on the occasion.
Visakhapatnam Naval Dockyard (V) conducted stage plays, competitions for dockyard apprentices and school children and awarded environmental trophies for the best environment-friendly department. INS Satavahana had organised Yoga session followed by trekking from the unit gate till Dolphin Lighthouse via Kanaka Durga temple and conducted Shramdan en-route for spreading awareness on air pollution and clean environment.
Eastern Fleet ships at Vizag also showed commitment towards reducing carbon footprints towards clean environment and participated in various environmental activities. Base Victualling Yard (V), Fleet Maintenance Unit, SMPSS (V), INS Dega, INS Kalinga, INS Satavahana and Fleet Maintenance Unit planted saplings, observed no vehicle day and conducted lectures.
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NDTV – Dettol Banega Swachh India campaign lends support to the Government of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). Helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan, the campaign aims to spread awareness about hygiene and sanitation, the importance of building toilets and making India open defecation free (ODF) by October 2019, a target set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, when he launched Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in 2014. Over the years, the campaign has widened its scope to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and menstrual hygiene. The campaign has also focused extensively on marine pollution, clean Ganga Project and rejuvenation of Yamuna, two of India’s major river bodies.