Schoolchildren clean the streets in Silchar

Oct. 29: Armed with brooms, shovels and baskets, students of a Silchar school picked up mounds of garbage from streetcorners and made a bonfire of them in a triumphant snub to the municipal authorities.

Piles of garbage are an eyesore on Silchar streets, especially on Sonai Road.

While most people are content with grumbling about the municipal authorities, students of Holy Cross school, a 41-year-old educational institution, decided to take matters into their own hands.

Last week, students of Classes IX and X plunged into the onerous task of clearing garbage.

Sister Sweta, a teacher at Holy Cross, said the chore would be taken up from time to time to keep the network of streets near the school free from garbage.

The school authorities said apart from explaining to students the need to endure a germ-free environment, this “co-curricular activity” would also help inculcate a sense of civic duty.

“This cleaning job by students deserves praise,” said Shefali Goswami, a housewife.

Anthony Gomes, 32, a marketing executive of a multinational company who visits Silchar town frequently, said the students have set an example.

The students, on the other hand, regretted that the councillor, Ranjit Roy, had washed his hands off this essential civic chore when the school approached him about clearing garbage from Sonai Road.

However, the newly elected chairperson of the Congress-run Silchar municipality, Sushmita Dev, was all praise for the “commendable job which the Holy Cross students have performed”.