Gandhinagar: More than 18,350kg of waste, including a large quantity of plastic, was collected from the beaches of the state in a fortnight-long drive from May 22 to June 5, the state govt informed on Friday.

The drive to clean beaches was undertaken by the Gujarat Environment Management Institute (GEMI) with participation from citizens.An official statement said that cleaning activities were conducted at coastal sites of Dwarka, Shivrajpur, Umargam, Dandi, Dumas, Mahuva, Porbandar, and Ravalpir. The initiative was supported by the Gujarat Pollution Control Board, local municipalities, forest officials, NGOs, and industries.

A number of awareness programmes were also held for the responsible disposal of waste, the statement said.With a 1,600-km coastline, Gujarat has several popular beaches like Shivrajpur (a Blue Flag-certified beach), Dwarka, Dumas, Tithal, Mandvi, Ghoghla, Somnath, Dandi, Porbandar, and Umargam. Some of these beaches also hold historical and ecological significance. Dandi is associated with Mahatma Gandhi's famous ‘Salt March', while Shivrajpur's Blue Flag status signifies high standards of cleanliness, safety, and environmental sustainability.

An official statement said that increasing tourist footfalls and local littering have led to beaches being polluted, mainly by single-use plastics, plastic bottles, wrappers, fishing nets, and other non-biodegradable waste accumulating along the coast. This waste endangers marine life such as turtles, crabs, and coastal birds, apart from affecting the livelihood of fishermen.The statement said that apart from the cleaning of beaches, awareness was created through 37 street plays performed in urban and rural areas of 15 districts like Aravalli, Rajkot, Bharuch, Kutch, Dahod, Junagadh, and Dang. These performances reached over 4,100 people, educating them about plastic hazards and promoting eco-friendly practices.Ten residential societies of Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad also joined in the waste collection drive, with about 450 residents collecting more than 250kg of recyclable plastic, the statement said.

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