Belona in Barpeta Becomes Assam’s First ‘Clean & Green’ Village

A CORRESPONDENT

PATHSALA: Belona village of Bajali subdivision in Barpeta district has recently earned the distinction of becoming the first ‘Clean and Green’ village in the State. Prime Minister Narendra Modi retweeted Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal’s tweet on Belona village and the initiative of the villagers to make their hamlet clean, green and plastic-free. The residents of Belona village expressed their joy and happiness when Prime Minister Narendra Modi retweeted the story.

Announcing this via tweeter, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said, “A community coming together to walk on the path of Swachhata, the people of Belona have shown how conscious collective effort can Beat Plastic Pollution.”

Taking note of this achievement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to congratulate the Assam administration for this remarkable achievement. Congratulating Sonowal, Modi wrote, “Very good! Cleanliness powered by community initiatives is always wonderful to see. Congratulations to everyone who has worked on this Swachhata effort.”

To make India clean, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Mission on October 2, 2014. To add to this mission, now he has taken steps to ban single use plastic (SUP) and march towards the goal of making India greener and cleaner. Taking inspiration from his vision, the village called Belona, located in the Bajali subdivision of Barpeta district, has set an example of clean and green village and it aims to go to the national level to make a name and set an example for its cleanliness. This village has recently earned the distinction of becoming the first ‘Clean and Green’ village in the State of Assam.

Belona is 36 km from Barpeta town and five km from Pathsala town in the district. A few years back, the people residing in this village decided to go plastic free, and efforts were put in to make the village an ideal example of cleanliness and greenery. Their dream became reality when in 2016, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal declared Belona as the first clean and green village in Assam.

“Our village is 100 per cent plastic-free and if someone is seen using plastic, we fine a sum of Rs 501,” said the locals. “We have also planted tree saplings in and around the village which will make Belona a green village and in the coming years we will be identified as a model village,” they added.

“The women have played a pivotal role in this campaign. They gather in the village to make newspaper bags which they distribute to the shops and other business establishments in and around Pathsala town,” they further said. It is also seen that the residents of the village are fully aware of the ill effects of plastic and the need for going green. A local resident said that plastic was a threat to the environment and if people wanted to live a long and healthier life, they should completely ban using plastic products and plant more trees.”

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