Modi govt’s ‘Swachh Bharat’ campaign changed lives of people: BJP

Noting that the government has built toilets in over 11.5 crore households under its ‘Swachh Bharat’ mission, the BJP said on Monday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has worked to fulfil Mahatma Gandhi’s dreams about cleanliness and effected change in the lives of a large number of Indians.

Referring to the Open Defecation Free (ODF) campaign and the scheme to supply piped drinking water to households, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia told reporters that these measures will be written in “golden letters” in history.

He was addressing a press conference as part of the BJP’s “social justice” campaign to highlight the government’s initiatives specific to certain sectors or groups.

Over 58,000 villages and 3,300 towns have benefitted from the ODF Plus campaign, he said, claiming that the opposition had mocked Modi’s cleanliness campaign launched in 2014 but it went on to become a mass movement.

He noted that Rs 7,192 crore has been allocated in the 2022-23 budget for the Swachh Bharat Mission (Rural) while Rs 1,41,678 crore will be spent during 2021-2026 for the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban).

Earlier, Modi said in a tweet that new stories are being written in the field of cleanliness and the campaign shows how public participation can fill new energy in the development of a country.

Taking to Twitter, the prime minister shared a graphic detailing the achievements under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan such as construction of toilets in over 11.5 crore households and more than 58,000 villages as well as over 3,300 cities becoming open defecation free.