Adityanath bans paan, tobacco in govt buildings

Livid at the sight of betel juice stained walls of the building that houses his office, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday banned the use of paan and tobacco products in schools, colleges, hospitals and other government buildings.

On his first visit to the secretariat annexe building in Lucknow, the chief minister gave a piece of his mind to officials there asking them to stop chewing pan and pan masala when on duty.

He was visibly put off when he saw betel-juice stained walls of the building which is known as Lal Bahadur Shastri Bhawan and houses the chief minister's office and his secretariat, offices of the state chief secretary, principal secretary (home) and other senior Indian Administrative Services officers.

A few hours later, the chief minister directed officials to enforce a ban on the use of paan and tobacco in schools, colleges, government hospitals and hospitals. He also prohibited the use of plastic in government offices.

“The chief minister visited all the floors of the annexe building and met officials posted there. After detecting betel stains on walls, he asked employees not to consume pan or paan masala during duty hours and ensure cleanliness,” Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, who accompanied Yogi, said.

Adityanath also asked the staff to make the atmosphere in the building healthy and clean by avoiding the use of plastic, Maurya told reporters.

A stickler for cleanliness, the saffron-robed 44-year-old chief minister had administered a sanitation pledge to officials a day after he took over as the UP CM and asked them to ensure that the pledge is effectively implemented on the lines of Swachh Bharat Mission of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The officers were made to repeat after him a ‘swachhata’ pledge -- ‘I will not litter, nor allow anybody to do it. I will devote 100 hours every year, to make the pledge of cleanliness come true and I will propagate the message of Swachch Bharat Mission in every nook and corner of the country’.

Adityanath, who is the head priest of Gorakhnath Temple in Gorakhpur, is known to take a round of the Mutt and temple premises, inspecting the cleanliness of the place after practising Yoga between 4 to 5 am every day.

Photograph: PTI Photo