We always picture a beach to be clean and tranquil, but this is not the case with the beach in Ras Al Khaimah. Recently, my classmates and I decided to go to the beach near our college and were shocked to see the amount of garbage that nearly covered the entire shore. Broken bottles, used packets of cigarettes, fast-food takeaway wrappers, empty cardboard boxes and much more could be seen. We could hardly find a clean place to stand. But what made me to write this letter was the sight of a dead turtle.
This turtle was supposedly 50 years old and weighed around 60 kilograms. Its cause of death could have easily been due to it consuming plastic, but that alone wasn't the cause of death. It had a long, deep cut on its shell, which could have been caused by it hitting the edge of a boat or a propeller. Its body was severely bruised and its right front flipper had been ripped off. So, we couldn't tell exactly how it had died, but we believe that it could have been by eating plastic, which could be seen in its mouth.
The Ras Al Khaimah beach could be a wonderful place, and it could definitely support a healthy variety of wild life, but only if it were clean. We, at Mahatma Gandhi University, have started an Environment Club and cleaning up the beach is our first priority. However, this act cannot be accomplished by us alone. I therefore request my fellow readers to understand the situation, spare a moment to think about it, and offer support to help clean up the beach. By doing this, you could not only save one life, but a thousand. Please help us save the Ras Al Khaimah beach.
— The reader is a second-year business student at Mahatma Gandhi University.
