Everyone cries hoarse over lack of cleanliness. Few like to get their hands dirty. But, not this bunch of young citizens in Jamshedpur.

Saddened by their city's dismal ranking in a national sanitation survey recently, the 30 boys and girls who owe allegiance to a voluntary organisation called Republican's Challenge descended on the half-acre Aambagan grounds in Sakchi on Sunday armed with brooms, bins, masks and gloves. The best part is they will host their crusade every Sunday.

The nine-decade-old landmark doubles up as a playground for children, besides hosting fairs, exhibitions, political rallies and a popular Durga Puja, but neither the administration nor local residents ever bother about giving the open area some breathing room from garbage.

Aambagan grounds is hemmed in by Rajasthan Vidya Mandir, a state-owned high school, in the north; The Bengal Club and residential apartments in the west; Thakurbari Road in the east and a mosque in the south. Its lonely guardian is a bust of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at the southern end.

"The Swachh Sarvekshan has ranked the city 66 among 73. We felt shame and sadness. We were dismayed to find trash littering the ground in the heart of the city despite such a performance, and decided to do our bit," said 25-year-old Biswajeet Prasad, founder and co-ordinator of Republican's Challenge.

After their two-hour crusade from 9.30am, Biswajeet said they hoped to have driven home the message that cleanliness is collective responsibility.

"People pay their respects to martyrs only during their birth and death anniversaries. For rest of the year, freedom heroes like Netaji languish in dust and neglect. We cleaned the grounds and the bust," said the youth who is currently studying mathematics honours and also works with Tata Steel.

The outfit has a Facebook page and offers a WhatsApp number (7209450802), where garbage pictures can be uploaded for Sunday cleaning. "Most of us are students or working professionals; so, we can devote only Sundays to clean our city. We may work together at one spot or divide into groups to clean many," Biswajit added.

The group plans to write wall messages and stage street plays to generate awareness.

Raja Choudhary, general secretary of The Bengal Club and a morning walker at the grounds, gave a thumbs up to the outfit's pledge. "Jusco had cleaned the area after the district administration had removed encroachment last year. It is good that our next generation is reminding us of our responsibilities," he said.