Instil core values of cleanliness right from childhood, says Jaitley

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday called for cleanliness to be instilled as one of the core values right from childhood, adding that it should be part of the child's personality.

Inaugurating the first Rashtriya Bal Film Mela here, Jaitley said that celluloid media had become a powerful source of knowledge in the information age, adding that cinema had been emerged as a powerful tool for education in addition to its manifest function of entertainment. The film festival would help in instilling values of cleanliness propagated by Mahatma Gandhi, he felt.

Jaitley also called upon young children to watch films made by veteran film director Shyam Benegal, recommending 'The Making of Mahatma' and 'The Making of the Constitution of India.'

The three-day Rashtriya Bal Film Mela, which was organised by the Children's Film Society of India (CSFI) for the National Children's day celebrations, aims to provide an opportunity for children to appreciate high-quality film content, experience value-based entertainment, and to trigger their imagination about environment conservation and cleanliness.