Dehradun, October 2: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday said tourists coming to Uttarakhand are welcome but they should not litter. Rijiju said he loves coming to Uttarakhand as it gives him a feeling of "home". "I am happy to visit Uttarakhand as it is also set in the mountains like my home state Arunachal Pradesh," he said.

"Come to Uttarakhand but do not litter," Rijiju, who was here to participate in cleanliness programmes organised on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary under Swachhata Hi Seva-2024, said. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju Reacts After Manika Batra Makes History at Paris Olympics 2024, Says 'Keep Up the High Spirit' (See Post).

Briefly recounting his experience of visiting places like Gunji, Harshil, Chakrata, Nabhi, Auli, Niti-Mana and Tehri, he said Devbhoomi is beautiful. Visitors who come to the state in large numbers every year leave behind a lot of plastic and other kinds of waste.

Under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, every family has to be provided with toilets, solid and liquid waste disposal facilities, drinking water supply, and cleanliness of villages, he said. The Union minister for parliamentary and minority affairs also paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi and former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri on their birth anniversary. Parliament Session 2024: Kiren Rijiju Slams Opposition for Walk Out, Rajya Sabha Disruption, Says ‘Go Through What PM Narendra Modi Said About Manipur’.

Accompanied by state minister Premchand Aggarwal, state BJP president and Rajya Sabha MPs Mahendra Bhatt and Naresh Bansal, Rijiju also garlanded a statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Gandhi Park. He also gave the message of cleanliness by sweeping, besides planting a Rudraksha sapling at the park under the 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' campaign. He also honoured Swachhata Mitras and personnel by giving them certificates.