The Gujarat Vidyapith campus was filthy and full of garbage when Governor Acharya Devvrat made a surprise visit, a Gujarat Vidyapith official said.
Days after noticing filth and garbage on the campus of Gujarat Vidyapith during a surprise visit, Governor Acharya Devvrat has launched a cleanliness drive with the help of sanitation workers of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), an official said on Monday.
As per a release issued by the Raj Bhavan, nearly 40 truck-loads of garbage were removed from the campus since the drive was launched on December 16.
In October, Devvrat was appointed as the chancellor of Mahatma Gandhi-founded Gujarat Vidyapith, a deemed university with its campus on Ashram Road in the city.
After noticing filth and garbage on the campus, the governor himself started the cleanliness drive three days ago with a broom and shovel. On his request, the AMC also deployed 40 sanitation workers, four earthmovers, a tractor, and a water tanker, the release stated.
On Monday, the governor's wife Darshna Devi also joined him in the cleanliness drive. The couple removed cobwebs from the walls of various buildings inside the campus and cleared garbage from the floor using large brooms.
The governor also planted saplings on the land which he had cleaned two days ago. The playground was also cleaned and the area was levelled using four truck-loads of clay with the AMC's help, the release said.
As per the statement, the governor was shocked and surprised that not a single person living on the campus had joined his cleanliness drive so far and he urged students staying in hostels to clean the campus regularly.
"Willingness is needed for maintaining cleanliness. How can a campus which houses 1,400 persons remain so dirty?" the governor had asked.
The statement further said that though Gandhiji had founded the institution in 1920, Gandhian values were nowhere to be seen on the campus today.
"It is painful to watch the lifestyle of those who call themselves Gandhian. We need to work with commitment and honesty to make this institution as per Gandhiji's ideals," the statement said quoting the governor.