A Shimla-based NGO cleared about 7-8 tonnes of plastic waste from near a well-known shrine, Ghost Temple, on the Manali-Leh highway in Ladakh, at an altitude of 17,000 feet.
The eight-member Urooj Music Foundation team, comprising three members of the NGO and five labourers, carried out the cleaning mission for three days under challenging topography and harsh weather conditions, with mercury staying below the freezing point from October 13 to 15.
The stretch near the shrine on Gata Loops became riddled with plastic, especially bottles, over a local folklore that over 25 years ago, an assistant of a truck driver died there due to biting cold and thirst after the truck broke down and the driver left the helper in the vehicle to get some help.
Since then, the travellers have been leaving plastic water bottles at and near the Ghost Temple, which came into existence as the folklore became popular.
Sudarsh Pangi, a photographer and team member, said, “We first visited the location to understand the situation and see the extent of the waste accumulated there. After assessing the ground reality, we took a few days to gather all the necessary equipment and supplies required for the cleanup.
Once everything was arranged, we set out for Leh to meet with Army officers and discussed the initiative with Lt. Col Sunny Singhal. What started as a simple conversation turned into a meaningful journey towards protecting the beauty of Ladakh and taking responsibility for the environment.”
The cleaning mission is a call to all travellers coming by vehicle, two-wheelers or other modes of transportation that protecting the environment against pollution in the Himalayas is the joint responsibility of one and all, he added.
However, the team faced the real challenge after collecting the waste, as removing plastic from Gata Loops is only the first step and transporting several tonnes of discarded bottles from this remote mountain location and ensuring the material reaches an appropriate recycling or waste-management facility is a far more difficult logistical exercise.
The foundation expressed its gratitude to BRO (Border Roads Organisation) Project Himank and the Indian Army personnel associated with the project for granting permission and extending support to the initiative.
The primary objective of the BRO, under Project Himank, is to construct, upgrade and maintain vital road links.
Their cooperation made it possible for the NGO to undertake this environmental effort in a strategically important and geographically challenging region, the foundation members said. They appealed to every truck driver, biker, tourist and traveller crossing Gata Loops to offer water, not plastic.
The foundation emphasised that while collecting plastic waste requires significant manpower, transportation and huge effort, the plastic bottles discarded at such high altitudes do not simply disappear, and unless the plastic waste is transported to recycling centres, the entire exercise would be rendered futile.
The foundation also installed a hand-painted signboard after completing the cleanup drive, as a reminder to every traveller to keep our mountains clean and plastic-free.”
