NGO Organises Year-Long Weekend Volunteering Activity to Conserve Water Bodies

This weekend, it is organising a mega volunteering activity to restore water bodies across various cities in India.

File photo of EFI volunteers engaged in a beach clean up

Photo: Facebook/Environmentalist Foundation of India

With COVID-19 cases plummeting in India, the Environmentalist Foundation of India (EFI), an NGO that is well known for its lake restoration, beach cleanup, and wall painting activities, is back in action.

It has now launched a year-long weekend volunteering activity to restore waterbodies, and clean up beaches across India.

This weekend, it is organising a mega volunteering activity focused on restoration of water bodies across various cities in the country. Through the activity they aim to eradicate the indiscriminate garbage dumping in lakes and ponds and also create more awareness regarding their conservation, reported The New Indian Express.

Restoration Work to be Carried Out Across Cities

Speaking to the publication, Arun Krishnamurthy, the founder of EFI said they would be performing restoration works at Indore, Alwar, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli, and Chennai, on Saturday, 12 February, and Sunday, 13 February.

At Chennai, Tirunelveli and Coimbatore, the NGO will be carrying out a three month 'Vaanga Let's Volunteer' campaign in which its volunteers will restore large water bodies, and engage in lake clean-ups and walks. Similar efforts, Arun said, would go on every Saturday till the year end.

At Chennai, the volunteering activity will happen at Madambakkam, Sithalapakkam, and Agaramthen from 7 am to 9 am, while at Tirunelveli the activities will be held at Mullikulam, Thamaraikulam, Pettai Periyakulam from 3 pm to 5 pm and at Coimbatore it will take place at Kaliyaperumal Kuttai and Periya Kuttai from 4 pm to 6 pm, reported The New Indian Express.

In most cases, the NGO ensures to engage volunteers from the local area and educates them about flora and fauna there so the people in the community can understand the importance of conserving water bodies. This way, we believe, they would themselves take responsibility of cleaning up a small patch of land or water body in future, he said, adding that the Chennai floods have also taught people some valuable lessons on the conservation of nature.

Started in 2007, EFI is an NGO that focuses on wildlife conservation and habitat restoration. The group is active in Chennai, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Delhi, Trivandrum. They have carried out smaller projects in Shillong and Srinagar as well. To volunteer for their weekend clean-up activity visit their website indiaenvironment.org.

(With inputs from The New Indian Express)