Who says South India does not have Gatimaan. It is called Vaigai Express. - Thamizh Maran

-- Volunteers for ECoR.
A selfless service seldom acknowledged has finally turned into a boon for the travellers at Vizag Railway Station. Thanks to rag-pickers, the railway station wears a cleaner and litter-free look. A group of men silently work on the tracks each time a train departs. Their job is to pick up all the leftover plastic wastes and water bottles that clog the tracks of the railway line.
Carrying a white sack on their shoulders, the men get to work from the early hours of the day, gathering every piece...
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of plastic waste strewn around the station. These, they later sell to local dealers of acid wash who recycle and reuse the bottles. The process has left the railway station litter-free, giving a welcome relief to the scores of passengers who travel from the city. Vizag, being a popular tourist destination in the State, is visited by tourists from across the country. This initiative has paid off to ensure that station is plastic-free.
“We estimate around 1,200 rag-pickers to be present in and around the Vizag Railway Station area,” said P. Vasu of Association for Regional Tribal Development (Urban Wing).
Many of these rag-pickers live under the Ramamurthy Pantulupeta bridge and Sagar Nagar area and make a living by selling such wastes to scrap dealers.
Incidentally, the practice to engage rag-pickers to keep local railway stations clean is prevalent at some of the other stations such as New Delhi, Dehradun and Haridwar.
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