Highlights
- Uttarakhand to be the fourth state to be declared ODF
- Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala are already declared ODF
- States like Haryana, Gujarat and Punjab are likely to turn ODF by this year
New Delhi: Uttarakhand will be open defecation free (ODF) by this month-end, Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has asserted. He said his government has given maximum emphasis on Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s call for a ‘Swachh Bharat‘ and has taken a number of steps for cleanliness.
“By the end of May, Uttarakhand will be open defecation free, barring a few areas in Haridwar, Chief Minister Rawat told PTI in an interview.”
The 56-year-old chief minister said a plan is being chalked out to rejuvenate the two rivers in Dehradun – Song and Tons so that clean water flows through them.
The confluence of the two rivers is already free from smell. Birds have started drinking water there. It is encouraging news, he said.
Earlier, the Centre had announced that Sikkim was the first state to become open defecation free followed by Himachal Pradesh and Kerala.
It was anticipating four more states — Uttarakhand, Haryana, Gujarat and Punjab — to achieve the target of open defecation free by this year.
Chief Minister Rawat assumed the charge of chief minister of Uttarakhand on March 18 after the BJP stormed to power winning 57 of the 70 assembly seats, by ousting the Congress.
Also Read: 3 Years Of Prime Minister Narendra Modi Government: 2 Lakh Villages Declared Open Defecation Free
