Bhubaneswar, June 16: The municipal corporation will include more volunteers in the initiative to spread awareness about the importance of the Swachh Bharat Mission here.

With about two-and-a-half years left to achieve the objectives under the Swachh Bharat Mission, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) will empower medical officers as supervisors for anganwadi workers, auxiliary nurses and midwives, who will be called "swachhagrahis" in the new assignment that involves conducting rigorous campaigns under the mission.

This was discussed at a high-level meeting of officials at the housing and urban development department. "We felt the need to include more people in this cleanliness drive. These ground-level workers are the best medium to reach out to the core of the society," said an official of the housing and urban development department.

The officials have decided to call the anganwadi workers and the nurses swachhagrahis and provide them separate identity cards. They will get additional remuneration for the work, which includes sensitising residents to avoid open defection and construct individual household latrines.

"Swachh Bharat Mission is a mass drive, which will be successful only if we can bring more people into its ambit. We have already brought in women from self-help groups as swachhagrahis and the new plan to include more people will definitely bring about positive results," said mayor Ananta Narayan Jena.

The municipal corporation operates five dispensaries with staff strength of about 15. In addition to that, the National Health Mission operates another seven urban primary and community health centres in the city with a staff strength of about 21. Capital Hospital alone has about 60 auxiliary nurses and midwives. Besides, there are 186 anganwadi centres.

"It could be a game-changer if we are able to include so many people as volunteers for the Swachh Bharat Mission. It is indeed a mass drive, which cannot succeed without the public. There is a need to undertake an awareness drive in a decentralised manner and such workers have the capacity to reach out to the core, which is the necessity," said Rasulgarh resident Bidyadhar Moharana.

The plan of the state government is to achieve success through these ground-level workers by providing them a particular area between 500 square meters to 1 square kilometre. Each worker will take care of the given area and conduct the drive on her own. The materials will be provided by the civic body and on successful completion of the drive, the worker will get remuneration.

"We get a very minimal amount of money as salary. The government continues to provide us work but forget to give us the required money. We have already been assigned the task to teach expectant and new mothers of how to take care of themselves. This new plan will be another burden for us. We hope that they will provide us good remuneration for this new job," said an anganwadi worker requesting anonymity.