2020 Swachhata Darpan plastic management awards conferred by actor Aamir Khan in New Delhi

On january 12, 2020 the Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS) under Ministry of Jal Shakti, organised the ODF (Open Defecation Free) sustainability workshop in New Delhi.  The workshop had a special session by Bollywood actor Aamir Khan (founder of Paani foundation) who distributed awards to the best performing districts on key swachhata parameters.Swachhata Darpan Awards:
Actor Aamir Khan presented the Swachhata Darpan Awards for best performing districts which includes East Godavari (Andhra Pradesh), West Kameng (Arunachal Pradesh), Bemtara (Chhattisgarh), Diu (Daman and Diu), Panipat (Haryana), Vadodara (Gujarat), Kolhapur (Maharashtra), Moga (Punjab), East Sikkim (Sikkim) and Pedappali (Telangana).

Award for plastic waste management:
4 districts i.e, Dibrugarh (Assam), Sirmaur (Himachal Pradesh), Indore (Madhya Pradesh) and Puri (Odisha) were awarded for innovations and initiatives in plastic waste management.

• Sindoda panchayat of Indore was declared as the first plastic-free area in the Madhya Pradesh recently and the award was conferred to Indore Zila Panchayat chief executive officer(CEO) Neha Meena.

ODF (Open Defecation Free) sustainability workshop:

i.Workshop session: The workshop included 2 presentations on the themes for ODF sustainability. They were Information, Education and Communication (IEC); and Community Toilets.

ii.The state representatives were honoured for improving sanitation access in rural areas over the past 5 years thus leading to ODF declaration in India on October 2, 2019 under Swachh Bharat Mission – Grameen (SBM-G).

iii.The district collectors of various states presented on initiatives taken to improve the Swachh Bharat Mission- Grameen (SBM-G).

iv.Members present: Secretary of DDWS, Shri Parameswaran Iyer and other officials were present in the event.

v.SBM-G: The objective of SBM-G is that no one is left behind has moved forward with overall cleanliness in villages with solid and liquid waste management (SLWM).

About Ministry of Jal Shakthi:
Founded- September 1985(as Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation).
Headquarters- New Delhi.
Union Minister- Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.
Minister of State(MoS)- Shri Rattan Lal Katari.