Mumbai, Jan 14 (PTI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday instructed the district collectors to undertake a cleanliness drive at all temples in the state and ensure the change is "visible" within a week, ahead of the consecration of Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22.

Shinde gave these instructions at a review meeting chaired by him at his official residence here.

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"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given a call to keep temples clean. The district collectors in Maharashtra should undertake a cleanliness drive across all the temples and decorate them with electric lights. The change should be visible within a week," Shinde said.

He said the District Planning and Development Council of every district should allocate some funds for undertaking the cleaning of temples and surroundings at regular intervals.

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A special scheme should be formed for the same and DPDCs can allocate funds for the same, Shinde told the collectors, as per a release.

The chief minister also asked the state revenue department to appoint a nodal officer to monitor this work.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)