Trek To Clean - Muttatthi

Thanks to all the participants:

Ramesh, Soumya, Amol, Kavitha, Tarsh, Priya, Apun, Vasu, Didi, Balaji, Karthik, Amit, Roopa

A team of 13 members was the participant of the first trek of the series.

Thanks to all the participants for their time and effort. It was definitely a great start.

We reached the place by 9. We had an informal meeting with the forest department officials about the Trek To Clean program. It was both encouraging and surprising to know that they were also interested in this activity and wanted the support of NGOs & people like us to help them make Mutthatthi a Litter Free Zone.

We picked a couple of spots alongside the river. It was primarily plastic and bottles in that place (Mc Dowells seems to be a famous brand there J ). Everybody started with their gloves and garbage bag each. It hardly took anytime before everything was cleared off. All it took was a collective effort and a little time of everyone.

The monkeys there do not seem to like the cleaning business. They were always there to tear off the garbage bags. We understood then where the littering we humans indulged in came from. Monkey-Business indeed!

A few of the locals there came to us to talk about it. They were actually environment conscious volunteers who were already trying to spread the word. They showed us the pamphlets they distributed to help in spreading the awareness.

We are looking forward to working with them to make the cleaning a regular event, Yes, with all your contribution, in spreading the awareness.

Talking to the local people, the boat contractors of that area and the local trekking guides and surveying the place gave us an insight into many issues prevailing in the area.

1. There are four tourist spots alongside the river in need of immense cleaning.

2. There are no dustbins anywhere in the vicinity. Even if someone does not want to litter, there is no way one could put away the garbage. We could put some dustbins, three at least in each spot, for visitors to use and we could work with the localities in disposing the same. We could assist in re-cycling the waste. (I am sure McDowells would buy them back J ).

3. There are seven Danger water spots. There are no alerts or warning signboards anywhere close to these spots. Unfortunate Accidents in this zone are very frequent.

Beyond this, there is also the common problem of poverty and illiteracy affecting the area. We need to spread awareness among the villagers too.

There are no high schools in the village. The students after passing standard 7th are supposed to go to other bigger villages that have high schools. Going ahead, we could work towards this cause. This would need immense support of all the members.

In the end, it was about two dozens of garbage bags on the back and a few cleaner spots in Muttatthi and a heartfelt satisfaction of having accomplished something. Surprisingly, it needed some “going around” in the streets of Bangalore to dispose the garbage we collected. We were close to a Police Complaint when trying to dump it at a place, which we thought was a Dump Yard. Wonder where all the garbage goes.

Thanks to all the monetary and “In Person” contributions of the members. We are definitely looking forward to more of it. We welcome ideas, suggestions and active participation from all members in-order to make THE DIFFERENCE.

“The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep"

Thanks & Regards,

Roopa Sreedhar,

98861-62404

Why do we need to be careful when we are on an adventure?

Grief turns out to be a place none of us know until we reach it. We anticipate that someone close to us would die, but we do not look beyond the few days or weeks that immediately follow such an imagined death. We misconstrue the nature of even those few days or weeks. We might expect, if the death is sudden, to feel shock. We do not expect this shock to be obliterative, dislocating both body and mind… In the version of grief, we imagine the model with be ‘healing’. A certain forward moment will prevail. The worst days will be the earliest days. We imagine that the moment to most severely test us will be the funeral; afterwards this hypothetical healing will take place.

We anticipate needing to steel ourselves for the moment. Will I be able to greet people? Will I be able to leave the scene? We have no way of knowing that this will not be the issue. We have no way of knowing that the funeral itself will be the anodyne, a kind of narcotic regression in which we are wrapped in the care of others and the gravity and the meaning of the occasion. Nor can we know ahead of the fact (and here lies the heart of the difference between grief as we imagine it and grief as it is), the unending absence that follows, the void, the very opposite of meaning, the relentless succession of the moments during which we will comfort the experience of meaninglessness itself.

Many of us who have lost our loved ones know this grief. We know what happens when we lose a loved one to death. If we are lost, we leave our loved ones to face a life of pain inexpressible.

Adventure is a stress buster, which is very essential to the way of life we are leading these days. Adventure is taking CALCULATED risk, but the people can die because of overconfidence, negligence, or bad stars.

Protect the environment & protect yourself.

Mountains in India are divided into ranges. These ranges encompass the hills, jungles trails, tribes, forests, rivers, waterfalls, wildlife, caves, flora & fauna. Forests are home to every other species but human. When we embark on a trek, we are entering into a territory that is not home to us. We need to respect the rules of Jungle.

Each of these ranges is associated to respective forest department. Our forest departments are more than adequately equipped to help us complete our journey safely. When we decide to trek or hike in any of these ranges, it is absolutely necessary to seek permission from forest departmnet. Sometimes, a nominal fee ranging from Rs 75/- to Rs 400/- per head is collected as forest entry fee.

Students & individuals in a quest for adventure often ignore the many rules of going into the jungles and end up being a part of a misadventure rather than enjoying nature at its best.

• Informing the respective forest departments. When the forest department knows about the number of people that went into forest, their age & contact details, the expected duration of the event, they make sure of the safe passage of the adventure seekers until the event completes.
• Don't try to avoid paying the forest department fee while entering the forest. This is your insurance against many odds in an unknown & uncertain territory.
• It is important to take a guide from forest department who know the forest like the back of his hand, is well trained & sometimes carries a weapon.

Precaution Protection & Prevention

Whenever we go to a water spot, falls or a river in the quest for adventure, we tend to forget about looking for signboards that spell Danger and instead jump into the inviting waters without a care for the world around. In case of an unfortunate accident, we look out for the same signboards we missed out earlier. If we do not find them, we blame the government authorities for not installing proper guidance.

However, would we really look for guidance before it is too late?

Overzealous swimmers and equally overzealous non-swimmers, would we care to think twice before embarking on an adventure into the unknown?

Muttathi, Hogenekal Falls, Shivanasamudram, Sangam are some of water spots around Bangalore where many people have lost their lives in the name of adventure. Nevertheless, this has not deterred others from risking their lives.

Whirlpools, High Currents, Crocodiles, Quicksand, and Sharp Rocks at river bottom are some of the impending dangers associated with these water spots.

Take Precautions and Prevent casualities. Enjoy the best nature can offer!

- If water activities are something we love to indulge in, that rushes our adrenaline and gives us the best of the thrills, we should invest in life jackets. Life jackets cost a mere Rs. 500/- and are available in any adventure store in the city.

- Take safety equipments like ropes. Learn to use safety equipment.

- Please look out of signboards that spell danger. Take them seriously.

- Before getting into the water, talk to the local people around and find out the safe points to enter the water. Do not enter unknown waters, rivers & streams.

- DO NOT PANIC in difficult situations.

- Try being careful instead of being careless.

- If you are at the verge of drowning, and someone jumps in, to save your life, don’t panic and pull your savior down with you too. Do not pull at your savior’s hair, arms or clothe. Hold onto his back.

- Try being careful instead of being careless.

- When crossing any low flowing river, face the current and walk side ways.

In the hope to save a precious life

Roopa Sreedhar

95352-78981