BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Saturday announced that the fourth Saturday of every August will be observed as Garima Divas, dedicated to protecting sanitation workers from occupational hazards and promoting their social security and dignity.
Attending a national workshop on ‘Mission Zero-Ending Fatality in Sanitation Work’ organised at Lok Seva Bhawan convention centre as part of Garima Divas-2026, Majhi said a clean city and a safe environment were essential for a prosperous Odisha but the lives and dignity of those responsible for maintaining cleanliness must receive equal priority.
“Compensation is not our goal. Our goal is protection before death, prevention before accidents. The objective of Mission Zero is to ensure that sanitation workers engaged in hazardous operations return home safely,” he said. Experts, officials and sanitation workers from eight states participated in the workshop.
He called for greater use of technology and urged machine manufacturers and experts to develop and deploy robotic systems, artificial intelligence and other modern technologies for hazardous sanitation operations. He also stressed the need to provide training to sanitation workers to operate mechanised equipment safely.
The Centre’s NAMASTE (National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem) scheme, which aims to achieve zero fatalities in sanitation work, promote mechanisation and rehabilitation of sanitation workers, was cited as an important step in this direction.
Majhi said sanitation movement has acquired national significance under Prime Minister Narendra Modi who transformed cleanliness into a mass movement and became a symbol of the social upliftment of sanitation workers. “He gave a message to the countrymen that ‘cleanliness is not a small job, cleanliness is the work of nation-building’,” he said.
On the occasion, the chief minister handed over an insurance benefit of Rs 10 lakh to the wife of late sanitation worker Pratap Dalei. He said the focus must shift from providing assistance after a death to preventing fatalities in the first place.
Majhi also inaugurated a technology and safety equipment exhibition showcasing modern sanitation machinery. Work orders for houses were also distributed to sanitation workers.
Union Social Justice secretary Sudhansh Pant praised Odisha’s initiatives for sanitation workers, describing the state’s Garima programme as an example of a comprehensive approach covering both workers and their families.
Chief secretary Anu Garg said zero fatality was not merely a slogan but a commitment, assuring that the state would take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of sanitation workers.
