After Bill Gates, Ruskin Bond Praises Swachh Bharat Mission; Calls India Much Cleaner Than Before

Author Ruskin Bond, while speaking at the inauguration of this year’s edition of Tata Steel Jharkhand Literary Meet (JLM) on Saturday (8 December) said that the country has become much cleaner after the Swachh Bharat initiative was launched. He also added that certain old habits are difficult to get rid of, but if issues are addressed properly, it can be resolved.

Press Trust of India quoted Bond as saying, “Due to the Modi government’s Swachchta Abhiyan different cities have become cleaner than earlier. However, the problem is that the people return to their old habits and it would take time to change that,” he said when Bond was in Jamshedpur on Friday (7 December). He praised both Jamshedpur and Ranchi for keeping the city clean and beautiful.

He was in conversation with noted author and poet Uday Prakash. They emphasised on organising such literary meets in smaller cities and towns in the country to encourage children to read and identify literary talents in the youth.

The report quoted Chanakya Chaudhary, vice president, corporate services at Tata Steel as saying, “For Tata Steel, our investment in the region goes beyond industry and extends to building lasting relationships with communities. The tremendous response JLM has received for the second consecutive year gives us the confidence that we are on the right path.”

Earlier Billionaire Bill Gates had also praised the Swachh Bharat Initiative and advised the Narendra Modi government to build on its success.