168-hour-long swachh marathon kicked off, 6km covered on Day 1

Gurgaon: Hundreds of sanitation workers dressed in orange coats and masks were seen sweeping Railway Road on Monday morning as part of a first-of-its-kind cleanliness initiative by the Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) in the city.
The sanitation workers were accompanied by MCG commissioner Yashpal Yadav, police commissioner KK Rao, mayor Madhu Azad, councillors, NGOs, residents and shopkeepers. In the first leg of the 168-hour-long cleanliness drive, the team cleaned up a 6km stretch, starting from Railway road. After the first shift, another batch of sabnitation workers will take over and continue the drive. As many as 28 stretches (total length 120km) will be covered.

MCG is hoping to make it to Asia Book of Records and India Book of Records with this cleanliness marathon and a surveyor for the same was also present at the cleanliness drive on Monday. Talking about the initiative, Yashpal Yadav said, “This will be the longest cleanliness marathon in Asia and we are hopeful that we will be able to use this opportunity to have more and more residents and institutions join us in the Swachh mission.” A total of 2,500 sanitation workers will be participating in the drive. On Monday, when TOI visited the spot, some of the workers were found sweeping roads while others were seen collecting garbage. “The workers will not only sweep and clean roads but also carry out horticultural work, sprinkle water on roads and other public spaces so that the dust settles down and remove illegal posters and hoardings on the stretch,” said MCG additional municipal commissioner Y S Gupta.

A team of MCG officials were also found talking with shopkeepers in the area, educating them about the importance of keeping their surroundings clean. MCG officials said that they would work with street vendors and shopkeepers to ensure that the areas remained clean. “We are talking to street vendors and shopkeepers to ensure that they keep their surroundings clean and also placing garbage bins outside their shops so that people do not litter. If garbage is found dumped outside any shop, shop owners and vendors will be held responsible,” said an MCG official. The corporation will also place garbage bins at major junctions and market areas as part of the drive.

Mayor Madhu Azad said, “The cleanliness drive takes forward the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Swachh Bharat’. The government agencies alone can’t keep the country clean and it is important that such initiatives are taken in order to change the mindset of the public.”