Govt to include forests under Swachh Bharat

Environment ministry planning to ban plastic bags, dustbins inside reserves

The Union government on Thursday announced that it would clean up 10 reserves and 10 tourist spots, mostly religious places, under its Swachh Bharat programme.

The government has identified 10 reserves for launching the Swachh Bharat Mission. These are Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary in Andhra Pradesh, Gir National Park in Gujarat, Kanha Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra, Flamingo Sanctuary in Maharashtra, Nagarhole National Park in Karnataka, Periyar Tiger Reserve in Kerala, Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan, Mudumalai National Park in Tamil Nadu and Corbett national Park in Uttrakhand.

“The government is planning to disallow use of dustbin and plastic bags inside the reserves and sanctuaries,” said Union Environment Secretary Ajay Narayan Jha. He added that areas around the parks would also be included with the help of state pollution board and municipalities.

The tourists spot are Vaishno Devi in Jammu and Kashmir, Taj Mahal in Uttar Pradesh, Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh, Golden Temple in Punjab, Ajmer Sharif in Rajasthan, Jagannath temple in Orissa and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Others are Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, Meenakshi Temple in Tamil Nadu and Kamakhya Temple in Assam.

"We are taking help of experts from World Bank. A workshop will be held to decide the time frame and financing of the project. After the pilot project, the government may roll out the scheme for other tourist places in the country," said Parameswaran Iyer, secretary, ministry of drinking water and sanitation. Iyer said his ministry has approached corporate groups for finance and National Aluminum Company Limited has agreed to fund work at Puri Temple.

PLACES INCLUDED IN SCHEME
Reserves

• Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary
• Gir National Park
• Kanha Tiger Reserve
• Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve
• Flamingo Sanctuary
• Nagarhole National Park
• Periyar Tiger Reserve
• Sariska Tiger Reserve
• Mudumalai National Park
• Corbett National Park

Tourists spot

• Vaishno Devi
• Taj Mahal
• Tirupati
• Golden Temple
• Ajmer Sharif
• Jagannath Temple
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus
• Manikarnika Ghat
• Meenakshi Temple
• Kamakhya Temple