300 residents walk to save mangroves on World Earth Day

VASHI: More than 300 environmentally- conscious residents, including 250 children, participated in a walk organised by the Navi Mumbai Environment Preservation Society (NMEPS) on World Earth Day on April 22, to promote awareness on the importance of mangroves and sensitise the authorities about the reckless and illegal dumping of debris.

The 3-km long walk started from the lake at Delhi Public School, Nerul and ended at TS Chanakya college, along Palm Beach Road, where the group gathered for a brief talk by environmentalists. The children were carrying placards that said ‘Save the Earth, Save Mangroves’, ‘Save my city, Save Mangroves’ and ‘Happy Earth Day’ among others.

“NMEPS has been at the forefront of environment preservation initiatives and has been organising various activities to highlight the cause of the environment in Navi Mumbai,” Vinod Punshi, president of NMEPS told the gathering. “We have been particularly focussed on the issue of mangrove protection here,” he added.

Amar Deshpande and Dr Pania, environmentalists and experts on mangroves ecosystems addressed the crowd. “They explained to the participants the importance of mangroves and wetlands in an interactive session,” said Sandeep Bangia, one of the organizers.

He added, “A large number of flamingos were also sighted behind the Indian Maritime University [ IMU] Campus, although it was clear they are being pushed to a corner by the dumping of debris.”

BACHCHAN KUMAR More than 250 students took part in the walk. ■