Their efforts have transformed an open space that was littered and frequented by drunkards into a clean place where group activities for children and seniors are conducted. The garbage dumped nearby has been removed. They have planted trees and also made a jogger's track, besides segregating wet and dry garbage. Now, the residents have taken up the work of cleaning the nullah that flows along the locality every Sunday.

Deodatta Patankar, a mechanical engineer, told TOI: "If the residents and the administration work together it can make a big difference. "Apart from the civic administration, the responsibility to keep the surroundings clean also lies with citizens. We have made a conscious effort to do our bit," he said.

Archaeologist Prakash Joshi, who is living here for more than two decades, was the first person to start cleaning the ground. "From 2004, I used to clean up the open space that is just opposite my house everyday from 8 am to 10 am. Drunkards, pigs and stray dogs would come and litter the place. In the rainy season it used to turn into a swamp full of mosquitoes and snakes. In 2007, some people formed the Dahanukar Colony(A) Vikas Mandal and decided to clean and maintain the open space,'' Joshi said.

Source: Times Of India Dahanukar colony goes green