From Netherlands To Kashmir:

69-Year-Old Woman Silently Cleans Dal Lake For 5 Years

- Observer News Service

Srinagar: It is 'Hollandse Schoonmaak' (Dutch cleaning) in Kashmir as a 69-year-old woman from the Netherlands has made it a mission to clean the waters of the famous tourist attraction Dal Lake of plastic waste.

Armed with her love for nature, Ellis Hubertina Spaaanderman can often be seen rowing her boat quietly in the waters of the lake to collect plastic waste and other trash.

She picks up the trash items one by one carefully from the waters and places them in a bag on her boat to clean the lake inch-by-inch.

"I also did it in the Netherlands as I was living on the seaside. In general, the Netherlands is clean, but ships throw waste, so I started collecting the waste, it is in my nature. When I see it, I cannot avoid cleaning up," Spaaanderman said when asked about her passion.

According to PTI, the Dutch tourist came to Kashmir first nearly 25 years ago and instantly fell in love with the place.

When she returned about five years ago, she stayed in the valley, but was dismayed with the levels of pollution in the lake.