Hours before Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi lands in Gorakhpur to meet the families of children who died at the BRD Medical College, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday said people in Delhi are trying to make the city a picnic spot.
Kicking off the Swacch UP, Swasth UP (Clean UP, Healthy UP) campaign, Adityanath termed Rahul Gandhi a 'yuvraj' and former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav 'shehzaada' and said their attempts to convert Gorakhpur into a picnic spot would be rebuffed by the people.
Adityanath said the people of Uttar Pradesh, particularly Gorakhpur, would "never allow this to happen".
More than 70 children, many infants, died last week due to encephalitis and a reported shortage of oxygen supply at the Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur, Adityanath's parliamentary constituency that he is yet to vacate.
"We have been fighting the battle against encephalitis for a long time. More cleanliness is required for this and we are running an immunisation drive," the Chief Minister said.
Urging the people to take part in the drive, Adityanath said without "active participation of the people, these drives will never succeed".
He said that people sitting in Delhi and coming to Gorakhpur for "picnic" neither know of hygiene and would never understand the cleanliness drive enough to be a part of it.
--IANS
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