Port Blair(Sri Vijaya Puram): Cleanliness cannot be left to sanitation workers alone. It requires the participation of every citizen, Lieutenant Governor Dr. Dinesh Sharma said as he launched Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The campaign, themed “Swachhata Mein Sahbhag, Swachh Bharat, Viksit Bharat”, seeks to turn cleanliness into a shared public responsibility, promote scientific waste management and encourage people to contribute to building clean, healthy and developed Islands.
Addressing the launch function at the Government Girls Senior Secondary School auditorium, Dr. Sharma emphasised that cleanliness is directly linked to public health and forms the foundation of sustainable development. Recalling Mahatma Gandhi’s emphasis on cleanliness and leading by example, he urged citizens to make cleanliness a daily habit.
Public participation at the heart of campaign. He called for active community participation in keeping public places and tourist destinations clean, particularly ahead of World Tourism Day on September 27. He appealed to people not to litter and to prevent others from doing so.
He also stressed the need to impart practical cleanliness education in schools, covering waste segregation, reduction, reuse, recycling and composting. Students, he said, should become ambassadors of cleanliness in their homes and communities.
The campaign includes the transformation of cleanliness target units and high-footfall public places, greater youth participation, promotion of a circular economy and the “Swachhata Se Samriddhi” Waste-to-Wealth initiative. As part of the awareness drive, Dr. Sharma flagged off a student visit to solid waste processing centres to provide first-hand exposure to scientific waste-management practices. He also administered the Swachhata Pledge and planted a fruit-bearing sapling on the school premises. The Lt. Governor, along with MP Bishnu Pada Ray and other dignitaries, subsequently participated in Swachhata Shramdaan.
The campaign will continue till October 17. Its larger objective is to strengthen public ownership of cleanliness, improve waste-management practices and promote a cleaner and healthier Andaman and Nicobar.
