Hennur resident runs clean-up drives across Bengaluru

Lazar Jankovic, a Hennur resident, says he has cleaned around 10 spots across Bengaluru, including Jayanagar, JP Nagar, Church Street and areas near Cubbon Park.

Jankovic came to India in 2018 for a modelling contract. He began the 4cleanIndia campaign in Gurgaon in 2024 after carrying out smaller clean-ups during his travels. The effort uses social-media challenges to encourage residents to clean and monitor public spaces near their homes.

Near BDS Garden, Jankovic said waste returned after an earlier clean-up and the placement of warning posters. After another drive and a video, residents began maintaining the site, he said, and it had remained clean for about six weeks.

He proposes that households and shops take responsibility for roughly two metres outside their premises. “Namma ooru, namma javabdari” — our city, our responsibility — is how he describes the idea.

Bengaluru is also carrying out a month-long drive targeting 1,616 garbage blackspots. Jankovic said he has approached Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad’s office about a larger clean-up drive across the constituency.