Coinciding with the Vishwa Seva Dinam, a massive global cleanliness drive has mobilized thousands of volunteers to treat environmental preservation as a sacred civic duty.

Across India and the wider globe, thousands of volunteers, students, and civic leaders took to the streets this week, armed with brooms and a shared ethos: that environmental preservation is a fundamental civic and spiritual duty.

The sprawling cleanliness drive marks the 73rd birthday of Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi (Amma), an occasion observed internationally as Vishwa Seva Dinam (World Service Day). By treating ecological care as a sacred obligation, the initiative frames hygiene, waste management, and environmental protection as practical acts of human compassion.

The mega-drives are coordinated under the auspices of the Swachhata Hi Seva (SHS) 2026 and Amala Bharatam Campaign (ABC), a nationwide public health and environmental initiative inaugurated by Amma on her 57th birthday in 2010. Reflecting Amma’s long-standing teachings on the inseparable link between nature and humanity, the campaign has grown into a formidable grassroots movement aimed at transforming public attitudes toward waste and sanitation. These grassroots efforts strongly complement Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Swatch Bharath Abhiyan, aligning community-led civic action with the broader national mission for public sanitation. By fostering a collective responsibility for waste management, the initiative continues to amplify the governmental vision of a cleaner, healthier India.

Mobilising a Global Community
Anticipating the Amritavarsham 73 celebrations, a vast coalition of ashram residents, devotees, and community volunteers deployed across public spaces for extensive clearing campaigns. These efforts frequently dovetail with global environmental observances, including World Cleanup Day, bridging local action with international ecological goals.

Institutional Action at the Grassroots
The drive saw massive institutional backing from Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham campuses nationwide. In a striking display of egalitarian service, faculty, medical professionals, and students from the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Amrita Kripa Charitable Hospitals, and Brahmasthanam campuses stepped out of their wards and lecture halls to sweep public roads, clear neighbourhood perimeters, and restore local environments.

Leadership by Example
The environmental campaigns are distinguished by the active, on-the-ground participation of high-profile figures. Spiritual leaders from the Mata Amritanandamayi Math worked shoulder-to-shoulder with legislators, judges, medical directors, and local government administrators, reinforcing the message that public hygiene is a shared, cross-societal responsibility.

Beyond the Broom: Sustainable Waste Management
While sweeping streets forms the visible core of the campaign, the ABC’s long-term objectives are deeply systemic. The recent drives placed a critical emphasis on waste sorting at the source, advocating for appropriate garbage disposal systems, and actively campaigning against open littering. Beyond immediate clean-ups, the initiative continues to contribute vital resources toward the development of sustainable public sanitation infrastructure across India.