The green way

It’s evident that green brigades are sprouting in several forms across the city. They may be small in number but that does not in any way take away their contributions in putting the city on a pollution-free course.

As another World Environment Day arrives, a few young professionals talk about doing their bit to make the world a greener place.  Those who cycle to work concede it is hard to pedal through traffic-heavy stretches but at the end of the ride, they feel good because they aren’t adding to the increasing pollution. Fijuhas Hassan, a professional, began commuting by cycle as a part of his rehabilitation after an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery. But once he started, he was hooked on to it because he realised how he was able to get ahead of traffic jams and found that he was also more active. “The biggest relief was that I was no more dependent on the office cab and public transport,” he says.

Although he concedes that it is challenging to wade through heavy traffic, Fijuhas says he would never give up cycling. “Initially carrying clothes and my laptop was a bit difficult but once I streamlined this, there was no reason for me to stop commuting by the cycle.” The benefits of cycling are immense, he adds. “I’ve not only been able to overcome my allergy but I’ve also managed to save on fuel, money and don’t have the hassle of finding a parking spot. I am glad that I am slowly contributing to a cleaner city.”

There are small groups that have taken it upon themselves to keep their surroundings clean. They believe that their small beginning could inspire others to follow suit. One among them is ‘Residents of Old Airport Road’ who came together to clear garbage dumps in the vicinity and paint a few of the dirty walls to prevent people from urinating and spitting on them.

“We realised that if we don’t take the initiative, no one will take it up for us. It’s alright to start in a small way but we wanted to make a beginning,” explains Jayanti B, one of the founders of the initiative. “I always believe that we need to be the change we want to see. We made a conscious effort to involve children too, so that they learn to take pride and ownership in their surroundings,” she says.  

Carpooling is one of the many options for reducing congestion on the roads, believes Siddharth Rao, an employee of a company in Manyata Tech Park. He has chalked out a plan and carp­ools with a bunch of people working in different compan­ies within Manyata.

“We have been carpooling to work for the last 2  years and it’s a great way to reduce traffic on roads. It works well for pe­ople living in the same area. All of us are relieved that we don’t have to drive and get stuck in traffic for hours,” he says.

He adds, “Now that we don’t have to drive, some of us carry our laptops and w­ork while travelling. This is a luxury we didn’t have earlier.”