Upload pics of dirty tourist spots, govt will clean

People visiting Red Fort, Taj Mahal, Hampi and other monuments in the country can now lodge a complaint with the government about garbage piles in and around these tourist spots.

The ‘Swachh Paryatan Mobile App’ — a mobile application that gives a push to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Swachh Bharat campaign — was launched by Union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma at a function here on Monday. It has currently been made available for a total of 25 heritage monuments.

“If any anyone spots heaps of garbage on visiting these monuments or if there is lack of cleanliness, they can take pictures of those dirty spots with their mobile phones and upload them on the Swachh Paryatan Mobile App. The complaints so lodged will be forwarded to the department or official concerned for swift action,” a senior ministry official told Deccan Herald.

Dirty spots at any of these 25 monuments would be cleaned within one or two hours on receiving pictures along with complaints from people on the mobile application, Mahesh Sharma said.

“If the nodal officers fail to restore cleanliness at such spots, action will be taken against them,” he said.

The minister described the people as the “largest stakeholders” and said the government’s cleanliness programme will not succeed without their help. “That’s why the ministry has decided to facilitate the general public to communicate their complaints to government about lack of cleanliness in and around the tourist destinations.”

Besides lodging complaints, the minister said tourists can also make suggestions on the app for improving the facilities and amenities at these tourist spots. “They visit but they do not know how to put their suggestions across to the officials. Now they can share them with us through this app,” he said.