Last Updated on 9 years by Publishing Team

The Assistant Minister for Health and Medical Services Mrs Veena Bhatnagar with a prize recipient for the poster competition.

“We should identify ourselves as hygiene champions to create a strong social norm of good hygiene in our homes, office, communities and region”, was the message from the Assistant Minister for Health & Medical Services Mrs Veena Bhatnagar while launching the Global Hand Washing Day.

The Ministry of Health & Medical Services in partnership with Colgate Palmolive celebrated Global Hand Washing Day at St Joseph the walker Primary school in Nasinu with the theme “Raise a hand for hygiene”.

The school students are targeted as they are instrumental for behavioural change.

The benefits of hand washing drills in schools and creating awareness around the importance of washing hand before eating and after visiting toilet facilities has made a huge impact in the decline of communicable diseases worldwide.

This campaign is dedicated to raising awareness on hand washing with soap as the most effective and inexpensive way of preventing infection.

Mrs Bhatnagar said that everyone should practice hand washing as promoting health is everybody’s business.

“Even though this event initially targeted school children, the focus should also be on our mothers & fathers, family members and teachers who have a lot of influence on the health of our children, to help supervise and establish hand washing practices”, Mrs Bhatnagar said.

Global Hand Washing day is commemorated in the month of October annually.