Swachhata Pakhwada launched in Cochin Port Trust

WHY IN THE NEWS?

Swachhata Pakhwada 2021 was launched at the Cochin Port Trust and the Swachhata pledge was administered in all departments.

About:

• On the occasion, shramdaan cleaning activities were also started in the Port areas.
• Activities that were proposed during the Pakhwada comprise of cleaning of work places, crafts & public spaces and office premises within the Port area.
• Programmes will be led by all heads of the department during the period.

About Swachhta Pakhwada

Swachhta Pakhwada was started in April 2016, with the objective of bringing a fortnight of intense focus on issues and practices of the Swachhta by engaging all the government ministries & departments in their jurisdictions. In order to plan the Pakhwada activities, an annual calendar is circulated among the Ministries in advance. Ministries that observe Swachhata Pakhwada are monitored by means of the online monitoring system of Swachhata Samiksha. On this system, action plans, images & videos related to Swachhata activities are uploaded and shared.

Background

This is an environmental awareness campaign launched under Swachh Bharat Mission. It was launched to achieve the goal of total sanitizations and cleanliness by October 2, 2019. Under the campaign, several ministries organise a theme-wise campaign called “Swachh Bharat Fortnight”. It is a voluntary exercise and it seeks to raise awareness and target programmes.

Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM)

SBM is a country-wide campaign that was initiated by central government in 2014 with the objective of eliminating open defecation and improving solid waste management. This mission is a restructured version of Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan which was launched in 2009. Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan failed to achieve its intended targets. Phase 1 of the Swachh Bharat mission ended in October 2019 while Phase 2 of the mission has been implemented between 2020–21 & 2024-25.