Facilitating toilet access for survey rankings
It seems the civic authorities in Raipur will do whatever it takes to make sure the city figures among the top ranks in the next cleanliness survey. The Raipur Municipal Corporation has roped in top hotels located on major roads, marriage halls and dharmashalas to allow non-customers and outsiders to use restrooms when needed. The municipal body is running a campaign, ‘Toilet, my right’, and wants private players’ participation as it has not built enough restrooms in the city.
“It is our desire that every organisation should be part of this campaign to enable Raipur achieve better ranking on sanitation-related parameters,” a senior municipal official said. The Central government had in August launched the third cleanliness survey, Swachh Survekshan-2018, to rank 4,041 cities and towns in the country with a revised methodology.
Ban on firecrackers in six cities for two months
Pollution has emerged as a serious concern cross the country and Chhattisgarh is no exception. But what has come as a welcome surprise is that the government is ready to suspend the populist agenda and enforce strict curbs. A complete ban has been imposed on use of firecrackers in six major cities during December and January, when air pollution reaches severely toxic levels.
Whether it is festivals or marriages, no exceptions will be made. “The state government has a zero-tolerance policy against pollution. So, time-bound action plan will be executed to get rid of the causes of air pollution,” Principal Secretary (Housing and Environment), Aman Kumar Singh, said. Already, various control measures have been put in place.
‘Tihar’ season continues in Chhattisgarh
The religious festivals of this calendar year have nearly ended, but the Chhattisgarh government has kept the celebratory fervour alive with a slew of ‘tihars’ (tihar means festival in Chhattisgarhi dialect), albeit official ones.
While the ‘paddy bonus tihar’ for farmers was held across the state last month, the government is set to launch ‘tendu patta bonus tihar’ for tribals from December 2. The state, which has surplus power, will later observe ‘bijlee (electricity) tihar’, follow by some more tihars next year. Well, political analysts are wondering whether these tihars are in preparation for the Assembly elections next year.
Spiritual guru on ‘save water’ mission
Joining a water mission to enable availability of water to masses, agricultural fields as well as industries, spiritual guru Jaggi Vasudev cited the importance of inter-linking of rivers but with a caveat. “It should be accomplished scientifically and not done for political or sentimental reason,” he said. Vasudev’s Isha Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding with the state government as part of its nationwide campaign for protecting rivers. Over 10 crore saplings will be planted across one km radius of water bodies, mainly rivers, during the next one year in Chhattisgarh. Technical guidance will be given to the state.
Ejaz Kaiser
Our correspondent in Chhattisgarh
ejaz@newindianexpress.com