Srinagar, August 30: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lauded the cleanliness and scientific waste-management efforts undertaken during the Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra 2026, saying that when cleanliness becomes part of people’s conduct, it enhances the beauty and identity of a place.
In his latest episode of Mann Ki Baat on Sunday, PM Modi said, “Cleanliness has a very great quality. When the resolve to keep a place clean becomes the people’s own resolve, the change does not remain limited only to cleanliness. It transforms the very identity of that place.”
He added, “Such efforts for cleanliness across different parts of the country inspire us continuously… Whether it is our villages or cities, our rivers or pilgrimage sites—their identity is shaped by our conduct. And when cleanliness becomes a part of that conduct, the beauty of the place is further enhanced.”
Referring specifically to the Amarnath pilgrimage, the Prime Minister said, “This time during the Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra as well, a similar inspiring picture of cleanliness and public participation was witnessed.”
He highlighted the difficult conditions in which sanitation workers operated, saying, “On difficult terrains, thousands of sanitation workers remained engaged in service day and night.”
PM Modi also pointed to the scale of waste management during the pilgrimage, stating, “During this year’s yatra, more than 400 metric tonnes of waste were collected and processed.”
The Prime Minister particularly appreciated the involvement of pilgrims in the cleanliness drive while trekking on a difficult terrain . “I particularly liked one aspect of this effort: devotees also became active participants in this cleanliness drive. More than 16,000 pilgrims took the pledge of cleanliness,” he said.
He further noted that more than 10,000 pilgrims received the ‘Responsible Yatri’ certificate, while highlighting an innovative initiative under which horse and mule dung collected along the pilgrimage route was converted into biogas and used to light the ‘Swachh Jyot’.
“In other words, in this sacred journey to Baba Barfani, cleanliness too became a form of service and faith,” PM Modi said.
The Prime Minister’s remarks come days after the conclusion of the 57-day Yatra on August 28 and have brought national recognition to the sanitation and waste-management model implemented across the Baltal and Pahalgam axes, base camps and other key locations.
More than 8,000 sanitation facilities were deployed across the Yatra ecosystem, including toilets, bathing facilities and prefabricated sanitation structures, supported by dedicated sanitation personnel.
Under the Zero Waste to Landfill approach, 414.46 metric tonnes of waste was collected and scientifically processed during the pilgrimage. The system covered segregation, collection, transportation and processing, helping reduce the environmental footprint of the mass pilgrimage in the fragile Himalayan ecosystem.
Information, Education and Communication campaigns were also conducted to encourage pilgrims to use designated facilities, segregate waste and participate in maintaining cleanliness.
Director General Rural Sanitation, J&K, Anoo Malhotra, said the Yatra demonstrated how infrastructure, manpower, technology and behavioural change could collectively create a cleaner and more environmentally responsible pilgrimage. The Prime Minister’s acknowledgement has put the spotlight on J&K’s efforts to combine sanitation infrastructure, scientific waste management and public participation to make the Amarnath pilgrimage cleaner and more sustainable.
