Swachhata Hi Seva drive kicks off in Vizag East with focus on cleanliness - The HinduPublished - September 17, 2026 08:10 pm IST - VISAKHAPATNAMVisakhapatnam East MLA Velagapudi Ramakrishna Babu on Thursday launched the Swachhata Hi Seva-2026 campaign at Jagannadharaju Nagar (J.R. Nagar), calling upon residents to treat cleanliness as a social responsibility and participate actively in the campaign.The month-long campaign will be conducted across the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) limits from September 17 to October 17. GVMC Additional Commissioner Palli Nallanayya said the campaign would focus on five areas – identifying and transforming cleanliness target units into clean public spaces; creating awareness among students and youth; ensuring the health, safety and dignity of sanitation workers; enhancing public participation; and promoting Reduce-Reuse-Recycle practices, including reduction of single-use plastic and reuse of waste.Mr. Babu urged residents to keep their homes and surroundings clean and avoid indiscriminate dumping of waste.‘Establish rainwater pits’Stressing on the need of water conservation, the legislator urged households to establish rainwater harvesting pits. Citing J.R. Nagar’s practice of establishing such pits to recharge groundwater and pointing out the nation-wide accolades the locality received for its initiatives, he urged other colonies to follow suit.A Swachhata pledge was administered at the launch. Sanitation workers who had rendered exemplary services were felicitated, while awareness stalls on cleanliness, public health and waste management were visited.The MLA, officials and residents later planted saplings in a park.Published - September 17, 2026 08:10 pm ISTSign in to unlock member-only benefits!Access 10 free stories every monthSave stories to read laterAccess to comment on every storySign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single clickGet notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products${ ind + 1 } ${ device }Last active - ${ la }