NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed people on Sunday to do “sharmdaan” (voluntary contribution) for cleanliness on October 1 across the country. It will be an one-hour (10-11 am) exercise across the country, sources said.
TOI has learnt that the Cabinet Secretary has held a marathon meeting on this with top officials from the Centre and states for its success and maximum participation.
Modi said the program will be a befitting respect to Mahatma Gandhi and just a day before Bapu’s birth anniversary.
Officials said a portal has been created where the district administration and the local municipal entities can details of the areas where the cleanliness drive will be undertaken, such as parks, riverfronts, tourist and public places that see high footfall.
- The cleanliness drive is part of the Swachhata Pakhwada-Swachhata Hi Seva-2023, a campaign that aims to promote cleanliness and sanitation in the country from September 15 to October 2⁵.
- The prime minister urged all citizens to join in the actual cleaning activities of public places such as market spaces, railway tracks, water bodies, tourist locations, religious places, etc¹⁶.
- The prime minister called the initiative “Ek Tareekh Ek Ghanta Ek Saath”, which means “One Date One Hour Together” in Hindi. He said that it would be a collective ‘swachhanjali’ (tribute) to Mahatma Gandhi on the eve of his birth anniversary¹⁶.
- The prime minister also asked people to share their photos and videos of participating in the cleanliness drive on social media using the hashtag #SwachhataHiSeva⁶.
- A portal has been created where the district administration and the local municipal entities can provide details of the areas where the cleanliness drive will be undertaken. NGOs, resident welfare associations and private organisations interested in organising cleanliness events can also apply online on the portals of urban local bodies or district administrations⁵.
Source: Conversation with Bing, 9/24/2023
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