In what could be described as the biggest beach clean-up drive, Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh saw more than 22,000 volunteers gather at 40 different locations along the 29 kilometres length of the coast to gather waste and trash.

In terms of volume, a total of 76 tonnes of waste material was collected and handed over to the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) for disposal.

The scale of the event overshadowed the massive drive that took place in Israel on October 30, 2020 which saw as many as 18,000 people congregating to pick up 62 tonnes of garbage from beaches on the Mediterranean coast, the Sea of Galilee and the Red Sea.

At the Vizag event representatives of the Wonder Book of Records were present and they certified the fete as a world record in beach cleaning drive.

This mega drive for cleaning up the beach was taken up between Naval Coastal Battery and Bheemunipatnam and it was organised jointly by the GVMC and the New York-based non-profit organisation, Parley for the Oceans.

The organisers said 22,157 volunteers participated in the drive.

Talking about the event, Cyrill Gutsch, Parley for the Oceans founder said: “India is a great country and freeing it from plastic by making use of available resources is our main aim.”

Among those who participated in the drive were individuals, residents’ welfare associations, various NGOs, personnel from the Eastern Naval Command and their family members, students, NSS volunteers, and employees of the Visakhapatnam Port Trust.

All the volunteers were provided gloves and bags to collect thrash.