The Ingenieur Vol 57 January-March 2014 The Ingenieur Vol 57 January-March 2014 | Page 74

INGENIEUR

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An “open classroom” in nearby Taman Warisan has provided
the opportunity for the children’s on-site education where
they are able to study river water quality on a regular basis.

The River of Life Project
(ROL) is a RM4bn longterm (2012-2020)
programme to make
the Klang River clean
and vibrant. Rapid
development in the city
has put a lot of stress
on the river, where over
three million people
live in the catchment
area. Sewage, rubbish,
industrial effluent, and
other pollutants are
constantly discharged
into the river.
ROL is an Entry Point
Project in the Greater
Kuala Lumpur/Klang
Valley National Key
Economic Area under the
Economic Transformation
Programme. It is spearheaded by the Ministry
of Federal Territories
and Urban Well-being.
The river clean-up and
the public outreach
programme is led by the
Department of Irrigation
and Drainage Malaysia
and its partners.
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has reached out to 12 schools,
three mosques and six suraus.
On the commercial sector, 25
developers and 20 restaurant
owners have attended various
POP programmes.
From his experience, Dr
Balamurugan notes the people
outreach process has been very
challenging, having met with
reactions like apathy, resistance
and all sorts of complaints from
the community. “It has been
a steep learning curve,” he
acknowledges. However, some
unexpected positive outcomes
have also surfaced.
Motivated by the POP
,
various groups have started
a more focussed initiative

VOL 57 JANUARY-MARCH 2014
VOL 55 JUNE 2013

called Society of Eco Greater
Melawati (SEGM) for community
improvement. Long-time
Taman Melawati residents, Ir.
Dr Dhileepan Nair and Zulkifli
Mohamed are the Pro-tem
Chairman
and
Committee
Member, respectively of the
recently registered society.’ Hj.
Sirol Aflah bin Hassan Basri,
the Chairman of the Al Hidayah
Mosque committee is the
Deputy Chairman. President
of the Rotary Club of Melawati,
Sunthar Raj and some members
of the Taman Melawati Resident
Association have also joined the
Society.
SEGM intends to transform
the area into an eco-friendly