Techie starts campaign against littering

HUBBALLI: Plastic is a hazard for our environment. People wax eloquent about it, yet drink water from plastic bottles and throw them away. But Veeresh Arakeri, 45, a computer professional, has taken the initiative of demanding a law that bars throwing away used plastic. He is now gathering public support by collecting signatures from citizens in Hubballi-Dharwad.
Arakeri, a medical transcription trainer who owns IT startup Shilpa Infotech, said that launched the signature campaign on June 27 and will collect signatures till September end. "We will submit it to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 2, Gandhi Jayanti, to mark the first anniversary of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. We will not fall behind but surely collect signatures only from people who express their commitment towards environment. We will visit temples, cultural halls, markets areas, where maximum number of people gather on specific days and time. We'll deliver small lectures on the ill-effects of plastic and then take their feedback on the campaign," he explained.
He asserted that other organizations like the Hubli Bicycle Club, Child Movement for Civic Awareness, Parisara Pariwar, Pragati Foundation have extended support to his initiative.
Veeresh Hiremath, secretary of Parisara Pariwar, asserted that his organization is supporting the campaign by bringing more like-minded persons on the same platform. "We have decided to honour volunteers, who take active part in this campaign, with certificates specially prepared for this campaign. We are also conducting awareness programmes at colleges to get signatures from students," he explained.
Karthik Irapannavar, member of Hubli Bicycle Club, said 25 club members will take out bicycle rallies to create awareness about the signature campaign. "At the individual level, we are convincing people not to throw plastic here and there. If it becomes a law, it will be minimized at larger extent," he said.