My Clean And Green Village-Essay By Abhipsa, 15, Bhubaneswar

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “The soul of India lies in its villages.”

According to me it stands true.

A village is a place where you can find hope, inspiration and most  importantly  a happy and peaceful life. In recent times, most of our cities are unlivable- congested and potholed roads, overflowing drains, erratic power and water  supply, garbage strewn around so much as to cause accidents. In  contradiction to this there are villages.

Early in morning the artistic golden sun gets up like a baby and starts painting  the dark black sky into a bright blue one. The milky, bright clouds get up from  sleep and start travelling around the sky, visiting the wonderful environment.

Next to the mountains and near to the forest there is a waterfall with ivory  white water splashing down the river as if someone was spilling a glass of milk. Everyone loves to spend their time in such a place.

Here, I would like to introduce you , my village Sarahara. It is a big and ancient  village, situated in the district of Khordha ,Odisha. It is self-controlled and self
reliant in most ways. Moreover our village is free from all kinds of pollution  and  has also been declared as the 6th clean village in India and it’s a matter of pride for everyone residing there.

There are sufficient green fields all around it, growing more than sufficient  granary for whole population of our village. There is a mesmerizing scene of a  tan coloured smart chubby farmer with a checked shirt driving along his  tractor on the muddy road. Long, tall brown and green paddy fields looks
like someone has spread a green dusty bed sheet.

This is possible due to everyone’s collective effort in maintaining the village  and their houses. Actually our village granary production has been exporting, that means it produce excess to sell it for others. My village is far away from  the noise of the city, surrounded by flourishing fields filled with crops. The air  feels lighter and cleaner than it does in cities because of a lack of factory  pollution. Being in the village allows me to interact more closely with flora and  fauna.

The small, colourful and cute butterflies dance all around the environment, looking for sweet nectar. The flower’s fragrance fills the whole air, making the   morning pleasant. I can still remember this scene when I am away from my  village feeling caged in this lockdown. The houses here are on stilts and with  thatched roofs.They are arranged in a linear fashion behind barbed wire fences.  The sea is just a stone’s throw away and is lined by tall swaying  coconut trees, in our village.

In the afternoon when the sun is high up in the sky, the village men have a  quiet siesta in shady spots with the melodious sea breeze whispering into  their ears. The women folk in their vermilion sarongs gather around, chewing  betel leaves and exchanging latest gossips. The sky then becomes a mixture  of orange, yellow and golden hues. The sun retreats majestically and its  fainting rays slowly disappear. The moon peers out of the clouds like a shy  bride. In moonlight, the sea glistens.

Cleanliness adds more value to my village. Since good habits are contagious, it is possible in our part to teach neighbours and uneducated about the  importance of cleanliness, by being a role model. We should also be mindful  towards this habit. We should stop others from throwing waste at undesignated places.

It is the cumulative effort of all of us which can help us build a clean India  someday.