Swachh Indore: Strategies that earned the ‘Cleanest City’ tag

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Senior IAS officer P Narahari, who is also commissioner, industries, and MSME secretary, has written a book revealing how Indore has emerged as the cleanest city in the country and manages to retain the tag time and again.

The foreword of this book has been written by legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. In 2014, Tendulkar was appointed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as one of the first nine brand ambassadors of the Swachh Bharat Mission.

This book reveals the strategies that enabled Indore to become the cleanest city in the country. It talks about the officials, public representatives and social organisations that contributed to writing the success story of Indore in the field of cleanliness through various mediums, skills and intellectual pursuits.

Indore’s success in cleanliness got fame in the country and abroad and it was continuously appreciated by President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and other senior officials and public representatives through Twitter and other mediums.

The book, titled ‘Swachh Indore’, can become a reference point for citizens, administrators, policy-makers, journalism students and social organisations of any city to make their cities livable. It will promote the Right to Cleanliness and inspire people to lead a healthy life. Narahari has dedicated the book to the sanitation workers of Indore.

The book contains a special chapter on two then Indore municipal commissioners—Manish Singh and Asheesh Singh—incumbent commissioner Pratibha Pal and former mayor Malini Gaud. Along with the interviews of many eminent persons of society, their opinions are also mentioned in the book. This book written in English has been published by Prabhat Prakashan.

How ‘Ho Halla’ song became a city anthem

Narahari also talks of how the song of cleanliness, ‘Ho Halla’, became an anthem for the people of Indore, listening to which they used to wake up every day and play their part in making the city earn its ‘cleanest’ tag. This song was written by Hrishikesh Pandey and sung by famous Bollywood singer, Shaan.

‘Commemorating Civil Services Day’

‘I am extremely happy to announce the arrival of my new book, ‘Swachh Indore’, on the occasion of Civil Services Day’ — Senior IAS officer P Narahari, author