'Why Not Every Village, City?': Harsh Goenka Praises Odisha Village That Has Stayed Plastic-Free For 15 Years

Industrialist and the chairman of RPG group Harsh Goenka has turned the spotlight on a small village in Odisha. On October 3, Goenka took to his official X handle and shared a video of Babeijoda showing its clean and well-maintained surroundings.

In the post, Goenka highlights that the residents of the village have managed to keep the area "clean, litter-free and plastic-free for the last 15 years." In the caption, Goenka credits this feat to the village's "strong community spirit."

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He also raised a question about whether the same approach could be adopted everywhere else. "Why not we take this as a mission in every village and every city?" he wrote.

Watch the full post below

Babeijoda in Odisha has stayed clean, litter-free and plastic-free for last 15 years thanks to a strong community spirit. Why not we take this as a mission in every village and every city? https://t.co/tvZ4bDcp5L

— Harsh Goenka (@hvgoenka) October 3, 2026

The post quickly sparked conversation among the users, many of whom credit "civic sense" for maintaining the community, apart from the government assistance.

One user wrote, "Babeijoda shows what happens when people treat cleanliness as their own daily job, not something to wait for the government to fix. Women sweeping three times a day, plastic banned, and rules that even visitors have to follow, that's hard to copy at city scale, but the basic idea of local ownership is worth trying in every ward."

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Another user commented, "I think what lacks in big city is the ability to think largely rather we become narrow minded therefore we throw garbage here and there hardly bother for our community. I think we all should take lessons from this village and strive for betterment."

A third user wrote, "People want to keep their house and vehicle clean from inside, and litter the streets,roads,train etc. They fail to understand the value of public property and it belongs to them."

"First we need to take this mission in every co-op society in cities. Most villages are cleaner than cities. The cities are where the littering happens. Civics sense is only a subject in primary schools. To be forgotten after one attends secondary school," commented another user.