From Brooms to a Pledge: Income Tax Officials Lead Cleanliness Drive at Gau Ghat

Campaign under Principal Chief Income Tax Commissioner Dr. Rajaram Sah combines cleanliness, public responsibility and the need to protect the Shipra

Ujjain | SDNA

A cleanliness campaign at Gau Ghat on the Shipra River brought government officials and employees together for a hands-on exercise in civic responsibility. The special drive was organised by the Office of the Principal Chief Income Tax Commissioner, Ujjain, as part of the ‘Swachhata Hi Seva Pakhwada-2026’.

The campaign was led by Principal Chief Income Tax Commissioner Dr. Rajaram Sah, with officers and employees actively participating in the cleaning of the ghat premises.

Rather than limiting the programme to an awareness event, participants took up brooms, wore gloves and used environment-friendly waste collection bags while removing litter from the area. The collected waste was subsequently handed over for disposal with the assistance of municipal sanitation workers.

Gau Ghat becomes a workplace for civic responsibility

Gau Ghat was selected as the focal point of the department’s cleanliness initiative because river ghats are not only places of religious significance but also important public spaces.

The participation of government officials in cleaning activities was intended to reinforce the message that maintaining public places cannot be left entirely to civic agencies. Citizens and institutions also have a role in ensuring that shared spaces remain clean.

During the drive, participants removed waste from different parts of the ghat and encouraged people to adopt more responsible habits while using public spaces.

A pledge aimed at turning awareness into action

The programme also included a cleanliness pledge, administered to officers and employees, particularly involving newly appointed personnel.

Principal Chief Income Tax Commissioner Dr. Rajaram Sah encouraged the participants to remain conscious of cleanliness at public places and along the ghats of the Shipra.

The emphasis was on making cleanliness a continuing personal responsibility rather than treating it merely as an activity associated with a government campaign.

Shipra conservation requires more than cleaning the riverbank

The initiative also drew attention to the wider issue of protecting rivers, ponds and other water bodies.

Cleaning a ghat can remove visible waste, but long-term river conservation depends on preventing waste from reaching the water in the first place. Responsible disposal of पूजा materials, reducing plastic use and discouraging littering are equally important components of protecting the Shipra.

Public awareness at frequently visited locations such as Gau Ghat can therefore play an important role in influencing everyday behaviour.

Municipal support ensured waste disposal

The campaign also involved coordination with municipal sanitation personnel. Waste collected during the cleaning operation was transported to the designated location with their assistance for further disposal.

This coordination highlighted the importance of linking cleanliness drives with an appropriate waste-management system rather than treating the collection of garbage as the final step.

The larger message: keeping a ghat clean is harder than cleaning it once

The real significance of a cleanliness campaign is measured not by the amount of garbage collected on a particular day, but by what happens after the campaign ends.

A clean Gau Ghat can be created through a concentrated effort, but maintaining it requires continuous cooperation between government agencies, civic bodies, social organisations and citizens.

For the Shipra, conservation also demands behavioural change—avoiding littering, managing पूजा सामग्री responsibly, limiting plastic use and respecting the river as a shared natural resource.

The cleanliness pledge taken by the Income Tax Department’s officials and employees can therefore become more meaningful if its message extends beyond the workplace and becomes part of everyday public conduct.

If such initiatives are followed by regular awareness programmes, monitoring and citizen participation, campaigns like the one at Gau Ghat can move beyond symbolic cleanliness events and contribute to building a sustained public movement for Shipra conservation.

(SDNA)