2024

Jal Jeevan

Inauguration of the Wellington Eco Park in which Clean Coonoor played an advisory role. The wetland was created under ‘Project Amrut Sarovar’ a year earlier as a joint effort by the Army Establishment and Clean Coonoor. The Hinduja Foundation the took on themselves the responsibility of developing it as a full fledged Ec0 Park.


First Neighbourhood Cleanup

A prelude to more to come, the first neighbourhood cleanup was held near Highfield today. A neighbourhood cleanup is just what it sounds like: residents band together to clean up all or part of their neighbourhood.

Today’s affair was a small one conducted chiefly to serve other purposes such as – instilling neighbourhood pride, breaking a cycle of hopelessness and helplessness, giving everyone a chance to contribute whatever they can, improving quality of life and the self-image of residents and of the neighbourhood as a whole, and serving as a springboard for other neighbourhood actions or activities.

Most important of all – to encourage the embrace of diversity in a neighbourhood.


Opening of a Weekly Market for Organic Farmers

‘Once Upon A Time All Food Was Organic.’

This is no fairy tale but a fact. A fact that is either ignored conveniently as impracticable in today’s world with its ever growing population, or sneered at as an emerging fad.

But we have now come a full circle. Driven by concerns about sustainability and toxin exposure, organic food is presently a growing market segment.

A laudable effort by the Department of Horticulture and Plantation Crops in association with The Nilgiris Organic Horticulture Farmers Association (TOHFA), the opening of weekly market for organic produce of small farmers in Coonoor.

This organisation is in the process of supplying City Compost to the Model Organic Village of Kinnakorai. It will strive to ensure a continuous flow of this commodity prepared at the municipal waste management facility at Ottupatarai – Coonoor.


Women Empowerment

Ms. Malathi Helen, Deputy Project Director, World Bank Assisted Tamil Nadu Women Employment and Safety Project on a late evening visit to the waste management facility, along with officials from the Social Welfare & Women Empowerment Department

A co-financed project, it will ensure generation of skilled women labourers especially those living in rural areas and provide job security.


Participative Learning

The first of a series of participative learning, a student centric activity which encourages learning by doing, using small groups, concrete materials, open questioning, and peer teaching.

Today’s programme was for students of Standard VI, and Brindavan School and Clean Coonoor will be holding subsequent sessions for other Grades on a bi-weekly basis in the forthcoming weeks.

We plan to expand this activity to other schools as well, and also rope in the help of other organisation working along similar lines for a better coverage of activities.


The theme for this year is ‘Land restoration, desertification and drought resilience,’ a rallying call for the protection and revival of ecosystems all around the world.

Keeping in tune with this year’s theme, a re-wilding programme was undertaken by the Cantonment Board, Station Headquarters, Madras Regimental Centre, and other units of the Wellington Cantonment. Brigadier S. K. Yadav presided, and in in his address, stressed upon the importance of joint efforts across different sections of the society for the success of such ventures. In addition to the army establishment and the cantonment board, students of ‘Laidlaw Memorial School and College, volunteers of NGOs, Be My Buddy, You Can Edu, and Clean Coonoor, also participated.


Honouring our Gardeners Tmt Selvakumari & Tmt. Manjula and our jack of all trades Thiru. Ramadevan, for making possible the achievement of being recognised thrice at the Annual Flower Show at Ooty. Their’s was the unenviable task of creating a lovely patch in the midst of the Waste Management Facility.


Creating the kind of climate that will bring about influence without threat.

An unexpected visit made by the Principal Secretary of Municipal Administration & Water Supply. He was much pleased and has assured all support vis-a-vis the sustainability of the project!


Celebrating Women’s Day at the TOHFA Weekly Organic Market at Ooty with The Earth Trust Nilgiris


Students from The Aalam Montessori School, Coimbatore interacting with the staff of the Waste Management Facility. Today’s exercise was different as the kids were asked to go about and find out what’s happening by themselves.

Contrary to all expectations, the main question was as to why people were sticking on to this sort of a job.

Seriously don’t know the answer, perhaps it’s some sort of esprit de corps. Perhaps not all Musketeers come with long capes and plumed hats.

Thank you Youth Conservation Action Network K Ramnath Chandrasekhar for bringing them.


“There is no room for race hatred here. Let that be our nationalism.”

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

Wishing all a Meaningful Republic Day, and on this day, let’s strive and prevent the four pillars of the preamble of the constitution, justice, liberty, equality and fraternity, from becoming mere platitudes!


Thanks to Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd., the Resource Recovery Centre is now equipped with a State of Art No-Fuel Burner.


The New Year greets us like the Old, and we take this opportunity to Salute each and everyone in the Essential Services who gave up their ‘Today’; for our ‘Tomorrow.’

Team Clean Coonoor

As a new strategy to keep the town clean and create awareness on littering, Clean Coonoor has started Neighbourhood Cleanups.

Read our recent post about this initiative on our Home Page for more details, and please do contact for organising such an activity in your neighbourhood..