Vice President Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday lauded the state government for its efforts to take the geographical coverage of open defecation free (ODF) area from 16% in 2014 to 96% in 2018 that exemplified the commitment of the state towards Swacch Bharat Mission.
Addressing the audience at an event under ‘Swachhta Hi Sewa’ campaign of the central government, Naidu said, “The massive jump in ODF ranking shows the awareness about cleanliness in the state and its commitment towards attaining it.”
Underlining that government cannot on its own ensure universal cleanliness, the V-P called upon people to contribute in attaining the dream. “Being a citizen, it’s everybody’s responsibility to do their bit. Only then we can see the difference on the ground.”
In an apparent reference to recently-launched national health insurance scheme ‘Ayushman Bharat, the V-P said, “Our country can become Ayushman only if we adopt cleanliness as lack of hygiene is one of the root causes of most diseases.”
Naidu called upon the people to contribute in cleanliness campaign by all means—tan, man and dhan (body, soul and money).
“Bodily cleanliness will protect us from diseases, if our soul is clean we won’t have hard feelings about others and clean money will ensure good sleep,” Naidu said.
{{/usCountry}}“Bodily cleanliness will protect us from diseases, if our soul is clean we won’t have hard feelings about others and clean money will ensure good sleep,” Naidu said.
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