Sarojini Sarada won a gold medal for her initiative to restore a pond in Cuttack. Picture by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, May 12: At a time when most countries are struggling to tackle environmental issues such as global warming and climate change, a 14-year-old girl from the city has transformed a ‘dead’ pond into a fish-breeding site.

Sarojini Sarada, a Class X student of Kazi Bazar Government Girls’ High School here, has emerged as one of the top two youth volunteers for the first Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards in Washington D.C., for her efforts towards ‘restoration of waterbody’.

She, along with some of her friends and schoolteachers, has spearheaded a campaign to clean up and revive a pond at Alisha Bazar. Subsequently, she found strong support from local residents for her initiative, which has now resulted in a great economic opportunity in the form of pisciculture. “Earlier, the pond was in very poor condition. I always used to think about initiating steps to clean it up. My friends and teachers helped me in my endeavour. Gradually, we also got the support of local people and involved them in restoring the waterbody,” said Sarada.

Besides her, a Class XII student of Father Angel School, New Delhi, has also been recognised for his efforts towards environment conservation. Both the students have received certificates of excellence, engraved gold medallions, cash prize of Rs 50,000 each and trophy for their respective schools from the committee of the Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards.

The duo had also won a return trip to Washington, D.C., to be a part of the international recognition events organised for the winners from all participating countries

Sarada, along with the headmistress of her school, recently returned from the US after participating in the four-day event. “It was an incredible experience. I got this rare opportunity to represent my country in the US. It is an achievement both for me and my school,” she said. Susmita Sahoo, the headmistress of Kazi Bazar Government Girls’ High School, said the students were initially working on 10 projects as part of the British Council’s programme for some international school awards. One of these projects based on the practice of untouchability, had bagged the fifth prize at an event in Ahmedabad.

“Following this, some officials from DLF, which is a partner of Pramerica Life Insurance, saw the project on the internet and contacted us. They asked us to send them some more project reports on our community services. That is how the waterbody restoration project came to their notice,” said Sahoo.

The headmistress said restoration of waterbodies was the need of the hour, as only 66 out of the 200-odd ponds exist in Cuttack now. “We are planning to seek assistance from the district administration and the Cuttack Municipal Corporation for restoration of all such waterbodies in the city,” she said.