GUWAHATI, July 17 - Maligaon-headquartered Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) will soon do away with the use of water bottles at official events and functions and water will be served to dignitaries and other invitees at such events in disposable glasses and cups.
Public Relations Officer (PRO) of NFR Nripen Bhattacharya told The Assam Tribune that this will be done as part of the Union government�s green initiative.
�A letter has been received by the Ministry of Railways from the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation suggesting that the use of water bottles during official functions, seminars, conferences, workshops, meetings and other such events should be avoided and alternative arrangements should be made for safe drinking water to avoid generation of waste,� he said.
The Railway Board has accordingly sent a letter to all general managers of all zonal railways to follow the procedure
�This will also avoid wastage of precious drinking water. It has been suggested that use of drinking water from bubble tops with suitable disposable cups can be resorted to during official gatherings. This will go a long way in achieving the goals of a Green India,� said Bhattacharya.
He added that the NFR will follow the instructions of the Railway Board. �Adherence to the new directive will help in mitigating the problem to a large extent,� said Bhattacharya.
He added that during official functions, invitees are generally given water bottles of half litre or one litre capacity.
�Many a time, people do not consume the entire quantity of water. Some take only a sip or two. But once unsealed, you cannot hand over the same water bottle to another person even if it still contains 90 per cent of the commodity. With use of glasses, people can take whatever quantity of water they want and so avoid wastage of water,� said the NFR PRO.
He added that after official events used water bottles pile up in large numbers and at times it becomes difficult to dispose them.
Meanwhile, as part of its cleanliness drive, the NFR has intensified garbage collection at the railway colonies of greater Guwahati area, including Maligaon and New Guwahati.
�Contracts have been awarded to private parties and garbage is collected every morning from outside colony houses in auto-vans. This has helped in keeping the localities and drains clean and prevent clogging of water channels during the monsoon season,� Bhattacharya said.
