Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurating the Sawchhta Abhiyan under Swachh Bharat Abhiyan at the Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati on September 20 in presence of Union minister for drinking water and sanitation, Narendra Singh Tomar

Inaugurating the Swachhta Abhiyan programme at the Kamakhya Temple premises under the central government’s Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Tuesday said that the Kamakhya Temple will become a prime example of cleanliness amongst all the ten iconic places chosen for the scheme all over the country.

Sonowal said that the government, along with the civil society, will achieve Gandhi’s dream of a clean India and Assam will have to lead by example in cleanliness and hygienic practices in the country.

Swachhta Abhiyan is a target specific pilot project under Swachh Bharat Abhiyan which will be carried out in 10 iconic places from all over the country, primarily with religious and spiritual significance. The places which have been selected are Kamakhya Temple in Assam, Vaishno Devi Temple in Jammu & Kashmir, Taj Mahal in Uttar Pradesh, Tirupati Temple in Andhra Pradesh, Golden Temple in Punjab, Ajmer Sharif in Rajasthan, Jagannath Temple in Orissa, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Maharashtra, Manikarnika Ghat in Uttar Pradesh and Meenakshi Temple in Tamil Nadu. A total of 100 such iconic places are planned for Swachhta Abhiyan. After the completion of the scheme in the initial 10 places, it will be rolled out in the other 90 such places.

While thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for choosing to start the national programme from Kamakhya Temple, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said that Maa Kamakhya’s blessings would guide everyone to make this cleanliness drive a grand success and Assam will strive hard to make Prime Minster Modi’s dream of clean India a reality. He said if we are to become top nation of the world then we must practise cleanliness as a way of life and also inspire the young generation to commit themselves to keep their surroundings clean.

Reiterating that cleanliness is next to godliness, the chief minister said that the Kamkhya Temple is visited every year by thousands of national and international tourists and devotees and it is everyone’s prime duty to keep the shrine clean to spread the message of Swachhta Abhiyan.  The behaviour of the people will have to be changed for inculcating the habit of clean and hygienic living and awareness campaign would be carried out for this purpose under Swachhta Abhiyan, he said.  Along with worshipping Maa Kamakhya the devotees must take it as their solemn duty to keep the shrine clean to worship in truest sense of the term, Sonowal added.  He moreover also called on the priests of the shrine to make the scheme a success.

Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation Narendra Singh Tomar, who was also present on the occasion, said that all members of the civil society must cooperate with the government agencies to make Swachta Abhiyan a great success. He said that under Chief Minister Sonowal’s able leadership Assam will become a clean state and an inspiration for others.

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