For a meaningful - civilized - trash-free festival

 The annual First Full Moon Festival in Thu Dau Mot City with many free volunteer activities has become a unique cultural beauty at the beginning of the new year in Thu land of Binh Duong. This year, the festival's activities are aimed at the goal of making a festival of meaning - civilization - no garbage to contribute to preserving cultural beauty during the annual festival season, promoting the image of Thu Thu people being hospitable, friendly, compassionate, grateful, and civilized.

Members of environmental protection self-management groups clean up and pick up trash on roads.

 Join hands for a "trash-free city"

As part of a series of activities during the First Full Moon Festival 2024 in Thu Dau Mot City, on the morning of February 21, at Nguyen Du Park (Phu Cuong Ward), Thu Dau Mot City launched a program named "Festival of gratitude - civilization - trash-free" and Motorbike Taxi Group for Civilized Cities providing free service during the festival in lunar January. Huynh Van Thanh, Fatherland Front Committe’s Chairman of Thu Dau Mot City, said that for the implementation of "Trash-Free City" plan for the 2023-2025 period launched by People's Committee of Thu Dau Mot City and the cooperative program of the city Fatherland Front Committee, during this year's festival season, the city's Fatherland Front Committee will organize two groups, including: a self-management group protecting the environment for the "Festival of gratitude - civility - no trash" and a motorbike taxi group providing free service for January Full Moon Festival. These two squads will do their jobs from February 22 to 24 (from the 13 to 15 of the first lunar month).

Accordingly, 13 free motorbike taxi groups and 137 self-managed environmental protection groups in the city with about 840 members will participate in this program. Members of the environmental protection self-management team will perform some tasks such as: inform tourists and residents of waste disposal at the right places in areas where the festival takes place; directly collect trash scattered on streets and sidewalks and call on people to participate in cleaning and collecting trash to beautify streets and festivals.

Particularly, members of the motorbike taxi team will provide free motorbike taxi service to the elderly, children, pregnant women, people with difficulty walking, and visiting pagodas and temples during the festival. In addition, members of the motorbike taxi group also participate in informing and encouraging people to implement the criteria of the project to improve the quality of the campaign "Building a cultural and civilized urban lifestyle" with focus on the criteria of building "5 exemplary citizens".

Happy to participate in meaningful activities

Immediately after the launching ceremony, the free motorbike taxi groups and the environmental protection self-management groups began their work. In addition to new members with their first year of service, there are also many who have served this festival for many times. Besides young people, there are many older people, but everyone actively and enthusiastically join hands, because this is a way to help the locality spreading the beautiful image of the compassionate people of Thu land - Binh Duong, gratitude, friendliness, and hospitality during the First Full Moon Festival.

Nguyen Van The, a member of the free motorbike taxi group in Phu Cuong ward of this year's festival season, said that this is the third year he has joined the free motorbike taxi team. At 72 years old, The has been a motorbike taxi driver for more than 30 years. Life is still difficult, but he is willing to serve for free because in his opinion this is a very meaningful job. The shared: “I feel very happy to serve free motorbike taxis during every festival. We are always ready to take the elderly, disabled, children from parking locations to pagodas, temples and vice versa. I see it as part of my responsibility - a citizen of the Thu land...

For Nguyen Thi Hanh, 67 years old, a member of the environmental protection self-management group of Quarter 2, Phu Tho Ward, this is the first year she serves this festival. Talking with us when she and her members participated in cleaning up trash on Nguyen Du street, Hanh said this is a practical program for everyone. In particular, for self-management group members, through these actions they will set an example for others not to litter, making the city cleaner and more beautiful. In addition to cleaning streets, she also cooked and served free meals and drinks to people and tourists coming to this year's festival. Hanh said: “Being able to contribute to making the city cleaner, more beautiful and trash-free, I feel very happy. Hopefully, as visitors come here during this festive season, they will remeber the most beautiful images of a city of gratitude - civilization - no trash."

 Reported by Hong Thuan - Translated by Ngoc Huynh