National Cleanliness Day

Held on : 30th January

Cleanliness is the absence of dirt, including dust, stains, bad smells and garbage. Most public places in India, be it a street, a lane, a government office, a railway station, a bus station, a hospital, or a public park, look filthy. The offensive sites of littered garbage, overflowing sewage, defaced walls, people in hordes easing out in the public and water logged areas dot our city and country. A clean environment is a pleasure to live in. It is the duty of all to keep the environment clean and healthy. Sometimes people keep their environment very dirty with the result that it badly affects their health. The cleanliness of a city, village or an entire town begins from the cleanliness of individual homes. This responsibility for environmental cleanliness is highlighted by the observation of National Cleanliness Day on January 30th in India. The day calls to maintain high standards of cleanliness in out homes, work place, road/streets and public places. India needs to focus on cleanliness to claim a respectable place in the eyes, hearts, minds and souls of its countrymen as well as foreigners.

Events - Sanitation campaigns are held by panchayats and villages. Debates, painting, essay and quiz competitions are organised for the school children under the campaign. Individual toilets are constructed in villages to make the State completely free of open defecation. More  Measures are taken for the management of solid waste and dirty water. Solutions to Garbage segregation, vermi-composting of organic waste, sanitary landfills for inorganic waste, drains to channel water, waste water treatment and reuse, biogas for cooking and regular cleaning of the village are advised. The Nirmal Gram Puraskar (NGP):- Government of India has initiated an incentive scheme for fully sanitized and open defecation free gram panchayats, blocks, and districts called the ' Nirmal Gram Puraskar'.  Students and educational institutions play a major role in generating mass awareness.

Holiday Status - It is not a public holiday.