Cleanliness mission where every citizen is a safai mitra
As the festive season begins, the PM has reminded us that celebrations are most meaningful when they are clean and eco-friendly
I still recall the moment in 2014 when Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi picked up a broom and swept a Delhi street. It was far more than symbolism: It was a powerful reminder that the mission of a clean India cannot rest solely on the government but must be embraced by every citizen.
A clean India is a shared responsibility, and the true strength of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) has been how it has turned cleanliness into a people’s movement. It has turned every citizen into a safai mitra (friend of cleanliness) — from school students to homemakers, shopkeepers to farm and factory workers. Millions picked up the broom, transforming cleanliness from a government programme into a personal pledge of dignity, health, and pride.
That single vision sparked a true jan andolan (people’s movement), where cleanliness became a matter of honour and pride. PM Modi’s calls of na gandagi karenge, na karne denge (neither will we create filth nor will we let anyone create filth) and swachhata hi seva (cleanliness is service) inspired citizens across the country to act. What began as a government-led mission soon turned into the pride of every street, every neighbourhood, and every home, driven by an extraordinary wave of behavioural change.
In 2014, less than 40% of households had toilets. Today, more than 12 crore families have access to sanitation. Through the Swachh Bharat Mission, India has been declared open-defecation-free (ODF). The slogan Har Ghar Shauchalaya (a toilet in every home) is no longer just a promise, it is a reality, bringing safety and dignity to millions of women and children, along with improved health. The World Health Organization estimates that the lives of nearly 300,000 children have been saved because of reduced diseases linked to open defecation. The mission has now moved on to sustaining the ODF status and introducing comprehensive solid and liquid waste management, scientific processing of waste. The vision for SBM-Urban 2.0 is to achieve garbage-free status by institutionalising and nudging swachh (clean) behaviour amongst the citizens.
The PM’s genius has been to make the SBM about more than toilets and streets. It is about pride, culture, and the soul of the nation. From the Swachh Vidyalaya Abhiyan — giving schools separate toilets for girls and boys — to the Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra, a living tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, every initiative has inspired citizens to see cleanliness as a mark of respect for themselves and their country. Festivals are brighter when they are plastic-free, celebrations are more joyful when they do not leave behind waste, and each citizen understands that their small act contributes to a larger national pride.
We have witnessed a remarkable journey of the SBM — millions of toilets constructed, villages and cities declared ODF, and citizens embracing cleanliness as a shared responsibility. It has been my firm belief that the campaign must now seek to transform collective consciousness into daily discipline, making swachhata (cleanliness) not just a practice but a way of life, and ensuring that the gains of the past decade form the foundation of a cleaner, healthier, and more dignified India for generations to come. Most importantly, this phase of the mission focuses on developing the capacities of local bodies not just to look visibly clean but address the issue of waste processing and remediation of legacy dumpsites. Even the largest cleanliness survey, swachh survekshan, now measures the city cleanliness on parameters of door-to-door waste collection, handling and processing of waste.
With this vision, we celebrated last year’s SHS week (SHS-24) under the theme Swabhav Swachhata – Sanskar Swachhata (Temperament of Cleanliness – Culture of Cleanliness) which reflects a profound shift — from infrastructure to instinct, from compliance to culture. We aim to establish cleanliness not as an obligation, but as a reflection of our character and values. Every citizen must internalise it as a daily habit and moral responsibility. By embedding cleanliness into our swabhav (nature) and sanskar (ethos), we are not just sweeping streets — we are shaping a more dignified, healthier, and united India. True transformation will come when swachhata (cleanliness) becomes second nature, passed down through generations as a cherished legacy.
As the festive season begins, the PM has reminded us that celebrations are most meaningful when they are clean and eco-friendly. In this spirit, Swachhata Hi Seva (SHS) 2025 is being observed from September 17 to October 2, under the theme Swachhotsav (Festival of Cleanliness), with a focus on sustainability — promoting plastic-free villages, zero-waste festivals, and waste segregation at source. The campaign reinforces that cleanliness is not a one-day effort but a continuous responsibility towards future generations.
SHS 2025 observed Ek Din, Ek Ghanta, Ek Saath (One Day, One Hour, All Together) on September 25, the birth anniversary of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay. On this day, crores of Indians dedicated one hour to voluntary shramdaan (donation of labour), reaffirming that cleanliness is everyone’s responsibility.
Last year alone, over 800,000 neglected spots in towns and villages were transformed into vibrant public spaces — proving that collective effort can make cleanliness visible, tangible, and truly life-changing.
The greatness of this mission lies not only in its achievements but in its spirit. Every sweep of the broom, every clean corner, every plastic bag refused is not just about sanitation, it is about dignity, pride, and the India we want to leave behind for our children. Cleanliness is not someone else’s work; it is everyone’s mission. I urge everyone not to confine swachhata to a single day or a pakhwada (fortnight), but to carry this spirit throughout the year. Swachhata is not an event — it is a way of life. Each of us must take responsibility in our homes, neighbourhoods, and communities, and practice it every single day. Let us make cleanliness a daily discipline and commit ourselves to the pledge of Har Din, Ek Ghanta, Ek Saath — one hour of collective effort, every day, where every citizen is a safai mitra.
Manohar Lal Khattar is Union minister, ministry of housing and urban affairs and ministry of power. The views expressed are personal
