Highlights
- Swachhata Hi Seva campaign launched by President Kovind in Kanpur
- Campaign aims to build up to Swachh Bharat Abhiyan 3 year anniversary
- There will be cleanup drives across India for next 15 days till October 2
New Delhi: ‘I pledge to keep my surrounding and public places clean. I will first build a toilet at my home and then will help others to build one. I will manage my waste efficiently,’ this was the Swachhata Hi Seva pledge which thousands of people took today in Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur district and other cities of India, as President Ram Nath Kovind launches a special campaign that will see cleanliness drives across India for next 15 days. The campaign is being undertaken in a bid to celebrate Gandhi Jayanti on October 2 as ‘Clean Jayanti’ and fulfill the goals specified by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Swachh Bharat Abhiyan – a India that is free from open defecation and garbage.
Also Read: Highlights: President Ram Nath Kovind Launched Campaign To Mark Three Years Of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is a very important campaign, today our nation is fighting against dirty surrounding and against swachhta. Building toilet at home is a big work, take a cue from Sikkim, other villages that have been declared open defecation free, said President during the launch of the campaign.
He further added, “Every citizen must become a Rashtra Nirmata (Nation builder), Swachh Bharat is one campaign that can change the fate of our country.”
President Kovind said, “Open defecation leads to many health hazards, as per a survey 6.4 GDP goes into treating health issues like diarrhea, it is the time we fix this grim reality.”
The President also appreciated the efforts of women in India who have taken innovative steps just so that they can get a toilet at home.
I want to thank all the girls, women, who refused to get married in houses with no toilet, that’s a bold step and I salute your swachh efforts, signs of the President.
The President also felicitated local people of Iswariganj village for making their village Open Defecation Free.
#PresidentKovind launches "Swachhta hi Sewa" in Iswariganj, Kanpur; felicitates local people for making village Open Defecation Free pic.twitter.com/PZyoBfGZ9N
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) September 15, 2017
Prime Minister Narendra Modi who announced the campaign during his Mann Ki Baat address last month, thanked President Ram Nath Kovind for launching the people’s movement – Swachhata Hi Seva in Kanpur today.
I thank Rashtrapati Ji for taking the lead and launching #SwachhataHiSeva movement in Kanpur. https://t.co/SPlxss8x0O
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 15, 2017
The aim of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is to make India 100 per cent open defecation free by 2019. Till date, the government has constructed over four crore toilets out of the targetted 11.3 crore toilets needed to be built by October 2, 2019.
Vinil Gupta
September 16, 2017 at 5:52 am
Like a mother preparers her child before sending to school, India must pass the message to people travelling overseas that they are like Ambassadors of India. First we make habits (good or bad) then habits make us! We always feel happy to see a person with good habits.