New Delhi, 24 September 2014: In response to the Prime Minister’s mission to tackle sanitation and waste management in the country, the Union Minister of Steel, Mines, Labour and Employment, Narendra Singh Tomar today earmarked Rs 100 crore for the Swachh Vidyalaya Campaign, constituted by the CSR fund of PSUs under the Ministry of Steel, namely, SAIL, NMDC, RINL, MOIL, MECON, MSTC, KIOCL, and FSNL. Speaking at the review meeting with CMDs of PSUs, for assessing progress in Swachh Bharat – Swachh Vidyalaya Campaign at Udyog Bhawan, Tomar emphasised that cleanliness must be adopted as a way of life, and hence sanitation should be taken up not as a one-time activity but a year-long process. The meeting saw participation of Secretary (Steel) Rakesh Singh, CMDs of various steel PSUs and senior officials of the Ministry.
Tomar further urged PSUs to adopt villages and develop them as model villages in sanitation and cleanliness, serving as examples worth emulating. He also asked PSUs to develop a mechanism of building good quality and low cost lavatories, and involve local citizenry, such as school communities and panchayat representatives, to ensure continual maintenance of such facilities. The minister also emphasised on the use of solar energy for storage of water in overhead tanks for use in toilets in remote areas. He said that the officials at the district level should be involved while identifying and finalising the name of the local organization and NGOs for maintaining the same. Around 3000 schools have been selected in various states across the country for this project.
It was informed the Ministry of Steel is working with the Department of School Education and Literacy under the Ministry of Human Resource Development to make Swachh Vidyalaya Campaign a success. The Swachh Baharat Abhiyan is starting from September 25, and on October 2, as a tribute to the Father of the Nation, pledge will be administered in Steel Ministry and related PSUs for this mission. Employees and officials of the ministry will participate in one-hour Shramdaan to reiterate their commitment for this mission.
