By Press Information Bureau
NEW DELHI: The President Ram Nath Kovind, graced and addressed the India Today Safaigiri Summit and presented the most effective Swachchta Ambassador award to Sachin Tendulkar in New Delhi on Wednesday on the occasion of 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
Speaking on the occasion, the president said that in the past five years, the sanitation drive launched in the country had truly become a mass movement. Everyone from Prime Minister to Gram Pradhan has participated directly or indirectly in the cleanliness campaign to make it a success. He said that this historic success could not have been achieved without participation of every citizen.
Referring to India being declared as open defecation free (ODF) this evening by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said that it would be a real tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion of his birth anniversary. He pointed out that though the United Nation had set sustainable development goals to be achieved by 2030, India would be completing it 11 years ahead of the schedule. For this feat, every citizen of the country deserved appreciation, he said.
The president particularly referred to cleanliness as a continuous process that needs to be sustained all the time. We should not be lax in our efforts by being satisfied with our achievements, he said.
He also urged to develop a competitive model of cleanliness at village, block and district levels across the country to make further improvement in cleanliness drive. He said that on the basis of five years achievement, we must strive to achieve the goal of ODF plus by introducing technology in cleanliness campaign.
The President said that let us make the cleanliness integral to our collective social life to build a prosperous nation. We have to develop a thinking in which everyone will strive to make his house, street, village, town or city as the most clean and beautiful.
