The CRPF and the Northern Railways today launched a special cleanliness drive at the Jammu Tawi railway station here as part of the Centre's fortnight-long 'Swachhta Hi Seva' (cleanliness is the service) campaign.
Armed with brooms, CRPF IGP (Jammu Sector) A V Chauhan, and Northern Railways (Jammu) divisional traffic manager Naveen Kumar, along with other officials and municipal workers, fanned out in different directions at the railway complex to collect litter.
The CRPF officials also took a pledge to dedicate at least 100 hours in a year to cleanliness drives.
"The campaign that we started here today in coordination with the Northern Railways will continue till October 2," Chauhan told reporters.
He said the Jammu Tawi station was selected as the starting point of the campaign because it was usually crowded and also to ensure the message reached a large number of people.
"We will visit hospitals, bus stands and other places, too, where garbage has been piling up," he said, adding that the drive was aimed at encouraging the general public to keep their surroundings clean.
Chauhan said tourists had been complaining about heaps of garbage at public places.
"That is not good for the tourism industry. It is our responsibility to keep our surroundings clean," he said.
Kumar said the initiative needed to be taken to every part of the country and implemented strictly.
"Cleanliness is life and we need to take it (campaign) forward. It will help us in eradicating various diseases as well," he said.
Constable Ram Paul Singh of 160th CRPF battalion said he and his colleagues volunteered to join the drive.
"We volunteered to take part in the drive after our battalion was entrusted with the job of cleaning the railway station. We will give our 100 per cent to make this campaign a success," he said.
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