Students Lead Beach Cleanup at Fort Kochi as Part of Pupil Leader Action Network

Kochi, November 2, 2026: Students from five schools across Kochi came together at Fort Kochi today for a beach cleanup organised by the Pupil Leader Action Network (PLAN), in collaboration with the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi.

Coordinated by the GPS Student Council, the initiative brought together student leaders from Global Public School, St. Peter’s, Hagia Sophia, Charter and Cochin Refineries. Around 25 students from the participating schools, accompanied by their school heads, took part in the cleanup.

The event was endorsed by the District Collector, who attended the programme and interacted with the students. Addressing them, she highlighted that while cleaning up waste is important, reducing consumption is equally essential to addressing the problem of waste. She also spoke about Relove, an initiative encouraging people to reuse and exchange items rather than contribute to unnecessary consumption.

The cleanup was supported by CSE as part of its nationwide pilot Marine Litter Awareness Campaign, in which the schools are participating. CSE’s Marine Marshals initiative played an important role in guiding and supporting the students during the cleanup, with the CSE team travelling from New Delhi to Kochi for the launch.

Working together, the students collected 45 sacks of waste from the beach in a short period. The collected waste will be collated and disposed of by the Kochi Corporation.

The initiative highlighted an important message for young people: while cleaning our surroundings matters, the more lasting solution lies in reducing waste at its source and making more responsible choices as consumers.