20,000 Corporation school students turn Health Ambassadors for 'Clean, Healthy Chennai' campaign

In a unique initiative, about 20,000 students of Chennai Corporation Schools has turned health ambassadors for the awareness campaign "Clean Chennai, Healthy Chennai".

The students through a video appeal, released by the Chennai Corporation, stressed on maintaining Clean Houses and Streets to Prevent Monsoon Diseases. An official release here said emphasizing the need for maintaining general sanitation and the importance of cleanliness at home and in the neighbourhood, the Chennai Corporation released a video film featuring student ambassadors as part its awareness campaign "Clean Chennai, Healthy Chennai".

Chennai Corporation has taken a series of initiatives to create awareness about cleanliness and sanitation among the city dwellers. Based on the suggestion from the Chennai Corporation Commissioner Prakash, student health ambassadors were selected from various educational institutions across the city last month, as part of the "Clean Chennai, Healthy Chennai" campaign.

Tamil Nadu Municipal Administration Minister S P Velumani met the student ambassadors, congratulated them and gave them their identity cards. He urged the student ambassadors to create awareness about cleanliness, sanitation and about dengue and other contagious diseases in their neighbourhood.

This was followed by the release of the audio-visual presentation, made by the Chennai Corporation, on cleanliness and sanitation, featuring the student ambassadors. The campaign began with "Clean homes, clean streets" message, and stressed on the need for self-motivation to keep the homes and the neighbourhood clean, and requested the cooperation of the people to combat the dengue mosquitos.

The Corporation has also planned rallies in all the 15 zones, with the participation of 20,000 students, to spread awareness on "Prevention of mosquito-borne diseases during monsoon," "Open defecation", "Stopping usage of plastic," "Preventing stagnation of sewage or clean water" and on "rainwater harvesting". The students will also take out rallies in the streets near their schools and distribute pamphlets and flyers with these messages.