GROUP PHOTO: Hamad al-Khalifa and members of Indian community at the beach cleaning drive.
By Anand Holla
It’s early Saturday morning. Thick gusts of chilly wind and thin grains of sand enmeshed within lash across the vast expanse of a desolate West coast of Al Shamal. At times, some giant, ice-cold drops of rain rush in.
In the face of such inclement weather, carrying out a full-fledged beach-cleaning exercise comprising bus-loads of people, may not usually happen without a sizeable wave of protest or a general air of reluctance.
However, the 247 Indian expats gathered at the Shamal Beach, picked up black plastic garbage bags, slipped on a T-shirt, hand gloves, and some even gum boots, and promptly swung into action without a murmur of discontent.
Spearheaded by the Indian Embassy and the Indian Cultural Centre (ICC), the beach-cleaning work went on for two hours as dozens of Indian expats fanned out across the shore in batches of four or six, getting their hands dirty and their legs, at times, sinking in squishy muck.
Come wind, rain or sandstorm, the cleaning drive didn’t stop until the volunteers stacked up a huge number of rubbish bags that would soon be picked up by a garbage collecting vehicle, thus letting the beach breathe a little.
Impressed by the dedication shown by members of the various Indian community associations, Hamad al-Khalifa, the Undersecretary at the Ministry of Environment, who, too, was present at the site, told Community that the drive is even more special since it has come about just days before Qatar celebrates National Environment Day this Thursday.
“I’d like to thank the Indian Embassy and ICC by making this happen in Shamaal, and also the Indian community in Qatar for always coming forward to be part of such important initiatives. This is certainly expected from the Indian community,” Al-Khalifa said, “As for Shamal Beach, it’s one of the most polluted places in Qatar caused by the massive plastic deposits and other marine debris brought about by water currents. Cleaning it is indeed vital.”
From partially broken down polythene bags to plastic bottles and cans, the sand and shrubs lining the seashore could be seen choking on a deluge of plastic refuse. Clearing this clog on the West coast of Shamal – which happens to have the highest density of plastic debris among all of Qatar’s shorelines – fits right in the Ministry of Environment’s plan to keep the shorelines of Qatar clean.
Girish Kumar, ICC President, said, “We decided to undertake this 45-day-long cleanliness campaign – it began on January 4 and will end this Thursday – after the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, launched Swachh Bharat Mission or Clean India Campaign on October 2, last year, on the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi.”
“To us, though, it wasn’t just about Clean India,” Kumar continued, “We decided to extend it to Indians living here in Qatar, which is our second home. So we decided to launch Clean Qatar.” After several discussions with the managing committee of the ICC, all 95 affiliated organisations representing states and communities of India were called upon to participate in the programme.
To get a sense of the range of those who pitched in, here’s a list of the organisations and schools that participated in the beach-cleaning drive on Saturday: Qatar Mahe Association, Sanskriti, Karnataka Sangha, Onattukara Pravasi Association Qatar, Tulu Koota, Indian Institute Of Quantity Surveyors, Samanvayam, Indian Doctors Club, Millennium Kids, Qatar Tamizhar Sangam, Kerala Social And Cultural Association, Maharastra Mandal Qatar, PAN NIT, Utkalika, South Kanara Muslim Welfare Association, Gujarati Samaj Qatar and Mangalore Cricket Club.
The Indian Schools who participated in the beach clean drive were Birla Public School, Delhi Public School, Ideal Indian School, Shantiniketan Indian School and Bhavan’s Public School.
Despite the hostile conditions, the mood was upbeat among the people. “We didn’t expect to find so much plastic waste in such a remote beach area,” said one member. After the drive came to an end, GD Sharma, a Hindi teacher at Birla, was seen holding a tiny bird in his palm. “One of us found it trapped in a shrub along the shore. Its leg was stuck to a polythene bag. It couldn’t move,” he said, petting one of the many casualties of the burgeoning plastic wasteland.
Dileep Kumar, an award-winning wildlife photographer who works for the Ministry of Environment, lamented at the havoc being wreaked by plastic debris on water bodies everywhere. “This isn’t just a national issue, it’s an international issue,” Kumar said, referring to the bigger issue of plastic gyres, a small part of which significantly affects Qatar as well.
A gyre, essentially, is a naturally occurring vortex of wind and currents that rotate in a clockwise direction in the northern hemisphere and counter-clockwise in the southern hemisphere, thereby creating a whirlpool effect. The vortex moves more slowly at the centre, which is where marine plastic debris collects. “There are five major gyres in the oceans all over the world, and all have become huge islands of plastic debris,” Kumar pointed out.
The problem with gyres is that they are mostly full of carbon-containing chemical compounds which resist photochemical, biological and chemical degradation. “Marine waste from ships and plastic waste from other countries such as Iran, UAE and Pakistan end up here along this coast,” Kumar said, pointing at the clog.
“The North Pacific Gyre, for instance,” he pointed out, “is estimated to be twice the size of Texas.” This gyre, also known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, swirls in the Pacific Ocean roughly between the coast of California and Hawaii. “Since it takes several decades for this debris to break down, we must clean our shores,” Kumar said.
“Also, since these dangerous chemical compounds decompose into tiny sediments, mix with sea water and end up being consumed by fishes, it inadvertently comes back to us,” he said. Around 270 species including Turtles, Seabirds, Fish, Seals and other elements of marine ecosystem currently suffer from this. “Nowadays, we can’t claim any seafood is organic,” Kumar said, “Our food chain is killing us.”
