Dubai: A campaign to clean one of Dubai’s busiest districts while raising awareness on public cleanliness attracted crowds on Monday morning.
The Al Sabkha commercial hub in Deira, which teems with people, shops and cars, saw a flurry of activity as Dubai Municipality crews scouted the area, cleaning up paan (chewing tobacco) stains, picking up trash and demonstrating good public hygiene.
Paan stains and littering is common in densely populated areas like Al Sabkha. The municipality is focusing on such neighbourhoods in its ‘Say yes! to cleaner commercial areas’ campaign.
The campaign this year started in Al Sabkha, but the municipality has previously held similar drives in Naif and Al Fahidi. The main focus of the campaign in the area will span 10 days.
High-ranking municipality officials volunteered in the activities and explained the campaign to pedestrians and shopkeepers near Al Sabkha Bus Station.
Crowds followed workers and officials through the narrow alleys of old Deira.
A shop was awarded for having a clean track record in adhering to civic rules.
An outdoor picture gallery set up to create awareness about common public hygiene violations received a good response.
Before officials arrived, the municipality had set up a mock laundry and pasted notices on walls, which were then removed by officials to demonstrate that such practices are illegal.
It is against the law to hang laundry in balconies or use public property as message boards.
The bustling Al Sabkha district is one of Dubai’s oldest and busiest trading centres. Located close to Dubai Creek, the locality is famous for its variety of shops and cultures. Traders and shoppers from the Indian subcontinent, Africa, Russia and other Arab countries can be seen doing business and socialising.
It is also a wholesale market for hardware, textiles, electronics and other products. Tourists too find the nostalgic charm and bustle of Al Sabkha attractive.
Monday’s campaign stressed on adopting public cleanliness voluntarily rather than due to punitive action.
“We are not here to issue fines. We are here to educate people and raise awareness,” said Abdul Majeed Saifaie, director, Waste Management Department, Dubai Municipality. “We have merged three campaigns into one — general clean-up, removing posters, and against paan.”
Dilli Ram, a Nepali shop assistant, said the campaign was a good way to get the message across. “Dubai is a very clean city, but there will be some littering in some areas. Everyone likes cleanliness, no one likes dirty places. People should clean up after themselves,” he said.
