MIRROR TELLS YOU WHO' S THE CLEANEST OF THEM ALL
MIRROR TELLS YOU WHO' S THE CLEANEST OF THEM ALLUdgam School, Wagh Bakri building and AMC Staff Colony at Ellisbridge adjudged the best
TEAM AM
The wait is over. After a month-long competition, the Ahmedabad Mirror has zeroed in on the sabse cleanest office, school and street in the city. And, the winners are Udgam school in Thaltej, Wagh Bakri office in Ambawadi and AMC Staff Colony at Ellisbridge. The runners-up are St Xavier’s Loyola Hall in Navrangpura, ICECD office in Bopal and New Suryanarayan Nagar in Ghatlodia.
The winners will be felicitated at a functioned to be announced soon.
Four streets, five offices and 14 schools took part in the Sabse Cleanest Kaun contest that began on February 1. Kosha Thaker, manager (documentation and communication) at WASMO and Madhu Menon, director of Anala Outdoors, were the jury members. The marks given were out of 100.
TAKING TO STREETS
THE JUDGES started off by visiting the AMC Staff Colony, New Suryanarayan Nagar, Kadva Pol and Keshav Baug — all contesting for the title of sabse cleanest street. The AMC Saff Colony at Ellisbridge won with 55 points, followed by New Suryanarayan Nagar which bagged 45 points. “The AMC staff quarters had a percolating well for rainwater harvesting. They had a green area and residents were very enthusiastic about maintaining the standards of cleanliness here,” said Menon. New Suryanarayan Nagar had carpeted their street from wall to wall to keep the area clean and dust-free, said Kosha. She said, “The awareness level of residents regarding cleanliness is very low. There usually is a group of people dedicated to the cause.”
LESSON IN CLEANLINESS
NEXT, THE judges visited 14 schools across the city. With 60 points, Udgam school was adjudged the cleanest, followed by St Xavier’s Loyola Hall with 51 points. Judging schools was the toughest of all. “There were small buildings and large ones. Some had just primary sections. So the level of awareness among kids were not similar,” said Kosha According to the judges, Lotus School deserves a special mention for its students — mostly from middle/lower middle-class families — showed tremendous interest in the cleanliness drive. “The enthusiasm of students amazed us,” said Menon.
IN GOOD OFFICE
THERE WERE six contestants for the ‘sabse cleanest office’ title. This included corporates like Wagh Bakri and Claris, government offices, an NGO and a small set-up like Dwiti Travels, too. Wagh Bakri won the title with 73 points. ICECD followed with 65 points. “Wagh Bakri had exploited sunlight — the natural source of light — beautifully. The construction material and design of the building ensured that it stayed cool during the day without the help of external devices. Most of the offices, however, need to focus on increasing their green area.”
CRITERIA
Some of the parameters used to judge contestants were:
Green zone
Litter-free area
Participation of students, residents, officemates
Reduce, re-use and re-cycle principles
Level of eco-friendliness practiced SABSE CLEANEST OFFICE: WAGH BAKRI
Construction material used in the Wagh Bakri building helps it keep the temperature under control
The garden surrounding the building is a balm for sore eyes
The building design ensures that sunlight, the natural form of light, is exploited to the fullest
SABSE CLEANEST SCHOOL: UDGAM
Enthusiasm of students ensured that Udgam School scored 60 points, making it the contest winner
SABSE CLEANEST STREET:AMC STAFF QTRS
A percolating well to collect rainwater at Ellisbridge AMC staff quarters speaks volumes of eco-friendliness practised here
