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Minister Lauds Sachin Tendulkar For His Contribution Towards Boosting Swachh Bharat Abhiyan
Cricket star Sachin Tendulkar since the inception of India’s biggest cleanliness drive – Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has been actively involved in the campaign. Here’s a look back
New Delhi: Sportspersons can play a key role in spreading social messages and cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar’s active participation in India’s biggest cleanliness drive – the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has proved it, said Srinivas Prasad, Minister on Sports Committee of Indian Mission, while addressing the UN session ‘Sport for development and peace’. He adds,
As a national sport of India which reaches millions of people in cities, towns and villages, cricket and its stars provide a very important platform for spreading social messages. And Indian cricket’s greatest icon Sachin Tendulkar illustrates this.
He further said,
Sachin Tendulkar has promoted hygiene among children since THE very beginning, he has encouraged schoolchildren to wash their hands before eating food. Because of his efforts he has been a brand ambassador for India’s ‘Swachh Bharat‘ or the Clean India campaign.
Sachin Tendulkar, 44, who retired from all forms of cricket in 2013 has been part of the Abhiyan since the inception of the movement in 2014. Back then he was invited by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be a Swachh Ambassador.
Watch: Swachh India Dream: Sachin Tendulkar’s Endeavours For The Initiative
Here’s A Look At Sachin Tendulkar’s Swachh Journey
In 2014, the cricket icon adopted Puttamraju Kandriga village in Andhra Pradesh under Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojna and decided to provide the villagers the basic facilities like sanitation, health and hygiene and a cricket stadium.
In 2016, Tendulkar proudly announced the village as open defecation free and assured all assistance to the authorities’ for their plan to build a stadium.
Earlier in 2017, he adopted another village, Donja in Osmanabad (Maharashtra) and emphasised on addressing the issue of potable water there since the entire region of Osmanabad has been facing a drought for the last few years along with the issue of sanitation.
Apart from this, the legend has launched ‘Mission-24’, a programme aimed at improving the quality of life in Mumbai civic body’s M-East ward, which houses one of largest slum population in the city. Under the mission, Sachin along with NGOs Apnalaya and Mumbai First, will transform the lives of M-East ward by improving basic amenities like setting up hospitals and schools, water and drainage systems, to name a few in over 24 months.
Recently, when India was celebrating Rashtriya Swachhta Diwas and the third anniversary of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan on October 2, Sachin Tendulkar with son Arjun Tendulkar and Yuva Sena President Aaditya Thackeray took to the streets of Mumbai and carried out a swachhta drive. The main aim was to urge everyone to use that special occasion and begin their swachh journey.
Apart from Sachin Tendulkar, other cricket players have also come forward for the cause of Swachh India, like Gautam Gambhir has become the Swachh Ambassador for New Delhi in a bid to make the city open defecation free, whereas Suresh Raina coming forward for waste segregation and sanitation facilities in New Delhi and Ghaziabad area. He has also been appointed as Ghaziabad cleanliness Ambassador.