A CLEAN-UP operation of a village beck to give a community a boost has been praised by a parish council.

On Sunday, around 20 serving British Gurkhas from Gurkha Company, Nepalese community, Catterick branch, living in Scotton, near Catterick Garrison, took part in the clean-up as part of Sewa Day, which involves performing an act of kindness selflessly without expectation of reward.

Sewa Day was set up by Nepalese Hindu Forum UK, a charity organisation working for the promotion of interfaith and cross-cultural understanding.

The beck was chosen because it had been badly affected by floods, and was inspected by parish councillor Margaret Smith.

Another Scotton parish councillor, Coun Jagannath Sharma, thanked everyone for making the positive contribution to the community.

He said: ‘’Your commitment and aspiration to serve others is much appreciated.

“The work you have done today is an example of your commitment towards positive contribution to the local community.”

Second-in-command of the Gurkha company, Capt Ram Malla, co-ordinated the project to make sure it ran smoothly.

Corporal Eka Rai and other volunteers said they were happy to get involved in Sewa Day.

The group cleaned the beck and cleared branches, leaves and blockages.