Raksha Rajya Mantri Shripad Naik has said, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, a drive to make India clean,is a people’s movement inspired by patriotism. He was addressing the All India ‘Swachhta’Bicycle Rally organised by the National Cadet Corps (NCC)to commemorate the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi in here today. Quoting the Father of the Nation’s ideal of‘Cleanliness is Godliness’ Shri Shripad Naik said, “Cleanliness makes us – mentally, physically, socially and intellectually healthy; to summarise, it’s for our wellbeing.”Raksha Rajya Mantri praised the participation of the NCC cadets in the Swachhta cleanliness drive. He said NCC has made immense contribution by taking part in various development activities like Digital Literacy, International Yoga Day, Jal Shakti Abhiyaan and drives on sensitive themes like drugs, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, waste management and environment protection. Raksha Rajya Mantri also lauded the contribution of NCC cadets in recent disasters including Cyclone Fani in Odisha and floods in Bihar, Kerala, Karnataka & Maharashtra.Director General NCC Lieutenant General Rajeev Chopra and senior NCC officers were also present at the event held at India Gate.The All India NCC bicycle rally commenced on August 10, 2019 from various parts of the country – Guwahati, Kolkata, Puducherry, Thiruvananthapuram, Panaji & Jammu in a coordinated manner. It will culminate at India Gate, New Delhi on September 28, 2019. The rally has covered a distance of 7,800 kilometres passing through 28 States and Union Territories. The NCC Cadets conducted mass awareness campaigns in villages, slums, schools/colleges, hospitals and other public places.