NEW DELHI: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Saturday urged the Members of Parliament to work towards taking the zeal of Swachhata Abhiyan from Parliament to each village of the country.
Launching a two-day Swachhata Abhiyan (Special Cleanliness Drive) in Parliament House Estate, the Lok Sabha Speaker said the commencement of the Swachhata Abhiyan (Special Cleanliness Drive) in the Parliament House Estate today is an endeavour to spread the message of Swachhata envisioned by Mahatma Gandhi.
On this occasion, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh; Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan; Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi and several others Union Ministers; Ministers of State, Members of Parliament and other dignitaries were present.
Recalling that the Swachhata Abhiyan was launched earlier by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to coincide with the 150th birth anniversary of Gandhiji, Mr Birla said Members of Parliament are the representatives of 130 crore people of India in Parliament – the temple of democracy and have an important role to spread this awareness.
Mr Birla further said that Swachhata (Cleanliness) is next to Godliness and this Swachhata Abhiyan is not only an Abhiyan of the Parliament House alone but will serve as an occasion to take the message of Swachhata to every village and town of the country to keep the society healthy.
Earlier, the Defence Minister remarked that this is the first time that such a Swachhata Abhiyan has been initiated in the Parliament House and congratulated Mr Birla for this initiative.
Mr Singh further observed that the Swachhata Abhiyan has now become an Andolan and people across the country have now become more aware about the uses of cleanliness of their surroundings and environment and the associated health benefits.
The Lok Sabha Speaker, Union Ministers, Members of Parliament and other dignitaries also paid floral tributes at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi and took a pledge to spread the message of Swachhata, which inter alia stated “Cleanliness is equivalent to Godliness and serves to keep the society healthy.
Later, Mr Birla visited Parliament House, Parliament Library Building, Parliament House Annexe and its Extension Building and gave detailed directions for cleanliness and upkeep of the Complex
The two-day Swachhata Abhiyan (Special Cleanliness Drive) in Parliament House Estate is being held on July 13-14 from 0900 to 1030 hours on both the days.
For the purpose of smooth conduct of the Abhiyan, Parliament House Estate had been divided into seven Sectors and Nodal Officers have been designated to coordinate the work in this cleanliness drive.
(AGENCIES)
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