New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday urged educational institutions to include cleanliness in their curriculum and spread awareness about the importance of sanitation.
He was speaking here after presenting Swachh Survekshan Awards for 2019, an initiative of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
Indore city of Madhya Pradesh won first prize in all the four surveys done so far and received a special mention from the President.
''By winning the first prize in all the four surveys so far, Indore has set an example for other urban centres,'' he said.
Observing that the country had made remarkable progress towards achieving goals of rural and urban sanitation, Mr Kovind said, ''Today, a city or village is identified by its emphasis on cleanliness. This is an important change.''
Emphasising that cleanliness be integral to the behaviour of every citizen to make it effective and sustainable, Mr Kovind said that several people pay attention to personal hygiene but were apathetic to public and community cleanliness.
''Change in this mentality is important for achieving the goals of Swachh Bharat,'' he said.
UNI