On Sunday, mayor P Rajkumar inaugurated the cleaning activity at around 7.30am, which continued till 3pm. "On Sunday the corporation cleaned four tipper trucks full of garbage from the tank, most of it being non-degradable plastic. This drive will continue for a few more weeks," said the director of community education, Vinny Peter.

Peter said that the civic body will clean the tank every week in the coming days. "We have planned to plant 1,000 trees around the tank," she said. When asked about the date, Vinny said that the corporation is yet to take a decision on it, but it will be done soon.

In February this year, mayor declared the Singanallur tank as an Urban Nature Interpretation and Education Centre. "As many as 676 species of birds, butterflies and plants have been identified in the tank. This gives us an opportunity to use the tank as a platform to teach about nature to students," Vinny said.

After the tree plantation drive, the Coimbatore Corporation plans to bring school students to the Singanallur tank, and will organize field tours to teach them on the biodiversity of the tank. "Students from corporation schools and other schools will be taken to the tank for the sessions," Vinny said.