No kidding: Children stage a skit on Vasco coal menace

Team Herald

VASCO: Even as the redidents of Vasco are fighting tooth and nail to get back a pollution-free atmosphere, their campaign got a filip with schoolkids from Mormugao Taluka lending their voice. 

In an annual event called Rainbow 2017, organised by the Junior Chamber International (JCI), Vasco, at Ravindra Bhavan here on Sunday, students from 12 schools from Mormugao taluka participated.

In the skit category, all 12 groups dealt with the issue of coal pollution and appealed to the residents to continue their sustained efforts till Vasokars got a clean atmosphere and fresh air.

With slogans like ‘Nahi milenga jivan dobara, pradushan mukt ho paryavaran hamara’, the students enacted episodes to highlight how the aged and children were the most vulnerable groups.

Some kids also "depicted" how the system had twisted ways to get Vasco blotted. 

Speaking to Herald, a group of Class VI students from Mount litera Zee School in Sancoale said that they had a clear idea of the situation of port town due to coal handling at MPT and hence they faced no problems while presenting a skit.

“We are very happy to present our views on the coal pollution in our city. We hope that we were able to communicate to the audience that coal pollution is the most serious environmental problems in Vasco and should be taken by all seriously,” a student from Mount litera Zee School told Herald.

As the issue of coal pollution has paramount importance for the citizens' group fighting against the coal pollution in Vasco, few members representing activist group namely ‘Goa Against Coal’ also made their presence felt during the event.

Meanwhile, JCI Vasco, president, Leroy Menezes, said, “For the last several years, we have been facing coal pollution and Vascokars are breathless! When we saw many NGOs across Goa taking up the issue, we at JCI also decided to take up this issue to create more awareness. One way was to give such topics to the students to express their feelings,” he said.

Menezes further added that "Students are our future and if they take up such issues in the right earnest, it will help fight the matter in a better manner. Such sustained efforts will surely wake up the administration and hopefully, Vasco will be a better, cleaner place to live in," he told.