Sharjah
Littering is an issue that has been written about so many times and yet people continue the practice of creating a mess. It is a daily scene in the Industrial Area 5 of Sharjah where we can see an open playground filled with trash. As I travel to school on that route, I notice that the area is always clean during the daytime, but later on the same place is filled with trash.
Every evening, young boys are seen playing cricket or football in the area and these players make a mess. They throw all the possible trash on the ground, even though bins are kept nearby. They are old enough and educated and should know about cleanliness. If we don’t bother about the environment and knowingly spoil the atmosphere, then we cannot blame the authorities.
Every day, municipality workers are seen cleaning the ground, no matter the conditions; whether it is too hot or cold. Why is then the younger generation so careless, lazy and least bothered about other people’s pain and struggle? Respect the public place and public servants who are working all day to make the city look clean and beautiful.
You can see the same situation in most parks, where people of all ages make it untidy. Most of the time we take the public grounds, parks, beaches and gardens for granted and use it as and when needed, but always careless in keeping the same places clean and tidy.
Another issue that I have noticed in the same area is coming across garbage bins that are closed and trash bags are left lying on its cover. At that point, I felt really bad for the municipal workers. Why can’t people dispose trash properly?
Bee’ah, Sharjah’s waste management company, has come up with ‘smart garbage bins’ in residential buildings encouraging a much cleaner city. But, on the other hand, we have people who can’t even throw garbage properly in the bin.
Until and unless the municipal bodies take strict action against the people who litter, we cannot find a solution. I urge readers to please not throw garbage around and instead use garbage bins provided to do the same.
FACTBOX:
According to a Gulf News report published on March 24, 2015 motorists and beach-goers who throw their cigarette butts on roads and public beaches will be slapped with a Dh500 fine. The fine will double, then triple for each repeat offence for litterbugs. Littering or dumping waste in an area will also result in the municipality inspectors imposing a fine of Dh500.
This also applies to public parks and even busy commercial areas around the UAE. Ashtrays and waste bins are placed in all emirates at every 50 to 100 metres, especially in busy central business district areas.
—The reader is a pupil based in Sharjah.
Be a community reporter. Tell us what is happening in your community. Send us your videos and pictures at readers@gulfnews.com
