There is a famous saying by Benjamin Disraeli ‘Cleanliness and order are not matters of instinct; they are matters of education, and like most great things, you must cultivate a taste for them’.
12th of May, 2019 marked the second successful inning of our cleanliness initiative. But this time, we decided to kick start early (around 6.15am). This would serve two purposes; 1. Give us more time to clean and cover a larger area. 2. Beat the heat. A WhatsApp group was created by us to communicate efficiently.
As the team prepared for the clean up, I could not resist but compare similarities between a surgeon and this team. The way surgeons scrub and wear gears in the operation theater before a surgery to cure a patient, the team wore gloves and masks to cure the road of this man made menace! A noble deed, indeed!
The elderly team members (kudos to your energy and dedication), were given a picking tool so that they would not have to bend to pick up garbage. We’re very grateful to Mr. Paresh Ladhad, for his generous donation towards this cause, due to which I could easily buy these equipments.
A few team members quickly marched back to the area we had cleaned last time and picked up trash. Rest of them started from the point we had stopped last time. This time the activity was faster and better because we had done the drill earlier. We wrapped up by 8.30am with our mandatory selfie and not to forget the cheerful smile of contentment!
The enthusiastic team consisted of Mr. Silverio Dias, Mr. Henry D’Souza, Mrs. Sarita D’Souza, Mr. Vinod Kumar, Mrs. Smita, Mrs. Shilpa Desai, Mr. Paresh Ladhad, Mr. Ladu Fadte, Mrs. Rohini Fadte, Mr. Parag Shetkar, Mrs. Sonia Shetkar, Mrs. Sabrina Faia and Mrs. Skitter Faia. My colleagues Dr. Saumyata Kalra, Mrs. Sailee Loliyecar and my ever supportive husband Dr. Pranav Nagarsenkar were amongst the team members too. The youngistan group comprised of Hemanshini, Lasya, Deeva, Gargi and Vishnu.
My ardent request to the readers is, do visit the Old Goa bypass near the Old Goa circle and observe the area we have cleaned under this drive. You will definitely feel motivated. Join us in this noble cause or start such a drive in your area too! By doing so you will boost our morale.
Until next Sunday, this is Dr. Swayamsidha signing off, wishing and praying that all the citizens of India treat our motherland as their home and I assure you’ll, that like any mother, our motherland will not disappoint us too!
