Governor P. Sathasivam has exhorted youngsters to cultivate cleanliness as a habit and an essential way of living.
He was inaugurating the flagship programme of the Ex-Service Officers’ Association (ESOA) organised on the theme of ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’ at the Colachel Stadium, here, on Sunday.
Mr. Sathasivam said that the Swachh Bharat Mission, which has been launched by the Central government, has gained nationwide acceptance with its appeal increasing every day.
“People from various sections including students have been joining the campaign, which is also a fight against pollution, known to be a silent killer. By ensuring a clean environment, we are guarding the society against such threats,” he said.
He lamented that the lack of effective waste management system remained a major issue that affected the State.
Health issues
“Most of us do not realise that the accumulation of waste has been causing so many health issues in our society.
The key to controlling these diseases lies in effective and scientific waste management,” he said.
The Governor added that Kerala is the first thickly-populated State in the country to achieve cent per cent sanitation coverage. The country has been able to achieve 74% sanitation coverage since the launch of the Swachh Bharat Mission.
Delivering the special address, Air Marshal R.K.S. Bhadauria, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Southern Air Command, stressed on the role of ex-servicemen, who were capable of providing huge impetus to important programmes such as the Swachh Bharat Mission.
Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IISST) director V.K. Dadhwal, National Cadet Corps (NCC) Additional Director General (Kerala and Lakshadweep) Major General Anoop Kumar, ESOA patron Thomas Mathew, president P.S.K. Nair, vice president N.P. Chandran were also present on the occasion.
A group of students representing the College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram, won a competition organised to design low-cost waste management technologies.
They were adjudged the first among five engineering colleges for their project ‘Manhole sludge removal system’. A team from the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology, Valiamala, came second for their project ‘Dustbin for households for automated segregation and cleaning of kitchen wastes’.
Besides, 1,100 students of 12 schools in the district and 200 students of five engineering colleges participated in the awareness programme, during which they were also provided an insight into the weapons being used by the Indian Army.
Later, students of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Pangode, and the Army Public School, along with the members of the ESOA, undertook a clean-up drive at their respective schools.
