INTERNATIONALCOASTALCLEANUPDAY-:Indian Coast Guard

INTERNATIONAL COASTAL CLEANUP DAY-2019

1. Introduction. Towards ongoing efforts of Government for the ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ and Hon’ble Prime Minister’s appeal for mass cleanliness and sanitation campaign, through “Swachhta Hi Seva”; the Indian Coast Guard conducted International Coastal Cleanup Day – 2019 (ICC-2019) in all Coastal States/ Union Territories on 21 Sep 19. The International Coastal Cleanup day is conducted in various parts of the world in third week of September every year under the aegis of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) in the South Asian Region. The Indian Coast Guard has been coordinating this activity in India since 2006.

2. Participation. This year, Maharashtra has witnessed the highest participation of 2,970 volunteers followed by Tamil Nadu which had 2,393 volunteers. Nationwide, a total of 19,479 volunteers participated in the ICC-2019 campaign. Various Govt. and civil agencies including NCC cadets, NSS, school and college students formed the largest proportion of volunteers alongwith ICG personnel.

3. Debris Collection. The campaign resulted in the collection of 75,224 kgs (approx) of marine litter. Debris collection was highest at Puducherry UT, at approx 28,200 kgs.

4. Civil support. Apart from other armed forces, ICC-2019 received good support from various civil authorities, Central and State government organizations, Municipal Corporations, NGOs, fisheries associations, ports, oil agencies and other private enterprises. Chief Guests for ICC-2019 included Hon’ble Vice Chancellor of Andhra University, Executive Director KSSPL, Regional Director (South) India Tourism while District Collectors were also present in the programme.

Sl.no	State/UT	No. of participants	Debris collected
			(Kgs)
(a)	Gujarat	2,097	6,190
(b)	Daman	500	2,000
(c)	Maharashtra	2,970	7,325
(d)	Goa	1,101	2,186
(e)	Karnataka	1,520	8,600
(f)	Kerala	1,690	3,260
(g)	L & M Islands	795	3,000
(h)	Puducherry	1,490	28,200
(J)	Tamil Nadu	2,393	5,120
(k)	Andhra Pradesh	1,310	2,650
(l)	Odisha	410	1,250
(m)	West Bengal	1,205	2,895
(n)	A & N Islands	2,998	2,548
(p)	Total	19,479	75,224