Railways to Continue 'Swachh Bharat' Mission Till March 2016

Madurai:  Indian Railways will continue the ‘Swachh Bharat’ mission till March 2016, when ‘Sardar Patel United Clean India Drive’ would be implemented, with focus on cleanliness at stations, hospitals and office premises, a senior official said in Madurai today.

The focus would be on stations from October 11 to 31, followed by railway colonies from December 16 to 31 and Railway Hospitals from February 15 to 28. Later systematic efforts would be taken to achieve sustained cleanliness and improvement in the environment, Divisional Railway Manager Sunil Kumar Garg said, quoting Railway board chairman’s communique.

Speaking to reporters here today, he said a larger section of staff and public would be involved in the cleanliness drive and uncovered areas also would be taken up in a phased manner.

He also said the Safety Commissioner was expected to inspect the Pollachi-Palghat Broad Gauge conversion work on October 5 and 6. If clearance was received, trains bound for Gujarat, Maharashtra and Mangalore could be operated through this section.

This would reduce the distance between Madurai and Mangalore and other states, including Maharashtra and Gujarat, considerably by about 100 to 150 km, he said.