In a major push to enhance cleanliness and civic hygiene ahead of the Republic Day celebration, Commissioner Secretary, Housing and Urban Development Department, Mandeep Kaur, today conducted an extensive sanitation drive in Jammu city under the “Swachh Republic Day” campaign.
The initiative aims to ensure a clean, safe and healthy urban environment in the run-up to January 26. Under this special campaign, comprehensive cleanliness drives are being carried out across all wards under the jurisdiction of the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC).
The sanitation drive primarily focused on removal of legacy waste dumped in vacant plots, cleaning of Garbage Vulnerable Points (GVPs), lifting of Construction and Demolition (C&D) waste from roadsides, removal of overgrown bushes, tree pruning and grass cutting, desilting of deep drains to prevent water logging, cleaning and maintenance of public toilets and addressing the persistent menace of stray animals in residential areas.
On the first day of the drive, focused sanitation activities were conducted in Ward Numbers 20, 21, 22, 23 and 73. Mandeep Kaur personally inspected various locations along with Commissioner, Jammu Municipal Corporation, Dr. Devansh Yadav and concerned officers of the Corporation.
The officers briefed the Commissioner Secretary on the ongoing sanitation measures and challenges on the ground. Several prominent localities, including Gandhi Nagar, Valmiki Colony, Sanjay Nagar, Shastri Nagar, Nai Basti and Nanak Nagar were covered during today’s drive.
During the inspection, the Commissioner Secretary issued on-the-spot directions to the concerned officers for the immediate removal of GVPs, C&D waste and garden waste. She also instructed the officers to initiate compounding and enforcement action against the defaulters found violating sanitation and waste management norms.
About 10 such drives have been scheduled till 26th of January 2026 and all the concerned officers were directed to be personally present during the drives. As part of the drive, encroachments on footpaths and public spaces in the form of extensions, rehries, fencing were also removed.
The Commissioner Secretary further directed that all encroachments on lanes and footpaths across the city be identified and removed without delay, emphasizing zero tolerance towards violation of civic norms. The Commissioner Secretary exhorted upon the officers and field staff of the Jammu Municipal Corporation to carry out sanitation drives with zeal, dedication and a sense of responsibility.
He stressed that the impact of these efforts must be clearly visible at the ground level. She underscored that sustained cleanliness requires regular monitoring, strict enforcement and coordinated efforts from all stakeholders.
She called upon the citizens to actively cooperate with the Jammu Municipal Corporation by maintaining cleanliness in their surroundings, avoiding littering, segregating waste at source and refraining from encroaching upon public spaces. She emphasized that public participation is crucial for making Jammu a cleaner, healthier and more livable city.