The Swachh Bharat mission, flagged off in 2014, is till date considered one of the biggest cleanliness drives in the country&rsquos history. Over the years, the emphasis has been on various aspects of cleanliness including hygiene, waste management and sanitation.

Swachhata Pakhwada,  a campaign that was started under the same mission two years later, aims to bring a fortnightly focus on cleanliness by involving the various ministries working under the government. With the Ministry of Tourism taking the initiative this month, the focus is on making all the important tourist sites in the capital a plastic waste free zone. So far, heritage sites like Humayun&rsquos tomb and Safdarjung&rsquos tomb have been part of the project. The Ministry of Tourism began Swachhata Pakhwada on September 16 and it is expected to continue till September 30, with cleanliness activities being conducted in several locations including Gandhi Samiti, Zoological park and the Janpath market area.

The Janpath flea market, located right in the heart of the city, is flocked by tourists regularly. The cleanliness drive was observed on September 23, 2019. It saw several tourism ministry officials taking to the streets and emphasising on the importance of plastic waste management.  Shoeb Samad, deputy director general (Swachh Bharat Mission), stated that their aim was to create awareness among the hawkers, vendors and tourists about the importance of a clean surrounding. He appealed to the sellers to install garbage bins outside their establishment to practice effective waste disposal . He stated that educational institutions like Indian Institute of Travel and Tourism Management, Gwalior, Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa and Institute of Culinary Management have been an active part of the campaign. According to Samad,  the students have pledged to keep their surroundings clean and also plant various saplings.