The Genesis
“If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one,” is a quote attributed to Dolly Patron, renowned singer and philanthropist, and this is what exactly happened post-Diwali of 2014, when a concerned citizen, on noticing the quantity of litter left behind by irresponsible tourists, roped in a few acquaintances to help clear up the mess. Encouraged by the success the group which quickly grew in numbers started regular cleanup and beautification activities in and around the township of Coonoor.
These were soon followed by other activities such as observance of international Days, Surface Drainage, Waterbody Protection, Eco-restoration, Sensitisations, and Heritage.
The challenge of cleaning up the Coonoor River was yet another landmark when the citizen’s initiative went on to become a registered trust on 29 April 2019.
From the Archives
Present Activities
Yet all experience is an arch wherethro’
Gleams that untravell’d world whose margin fades
For ever and forever……
Currently the organisation’s chief area of focus is Solid Waste Management, an important albeit largely ignored sphere. We presently operate a waste management facility on a Public-Private Partnership basis with the Coonoor Municipality. The facility started as a small affair and owes its inception to Mrs. Rajashree Pinnamaneni, a Philanthropist from Hyderabad.
Through the extended support offered by Mrs. Rajashree, and funding from Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies, Microland Foundation, other Corporates and Individual Donors, the facility has expanded and deals with all types of waste generated in town. It chiefly continues to operate by way of grants and donations, and to a lesser extent through its own earnings. A plan to expand this vital activity to other areas in the district is also on the anvil.
Surface Drainage, Waterbody Protection, Eco-restoration, Sensitisations, and Heritage, still continue to be, some of our other areas of interest.
Waste Management
Others
The function of journalism is, primarily, to uncover vital new information in the public interest and to put that information in a context so that we can use it to improve the human condition. See the media coverage of our activities.
Appreciation can make a day – even change a life, for the roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness.
No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play it – a well motivated workforce and a good volunteer base is a must for the success of any community oriented programme. See more about our team here.
