The Department of Higher Education (DoHE), Ministry of Education, is set to actively participate in Special Campaign 5.0, organized by the Government of India from 2nd October to 31st October 2025. Special Campaign 5.0 aims to promote Swachhata (cleanliness) across all offices, including autonomous organizations, by enhancing the cleanliness of government offices improving the overall workplace environment and reducing pendency matters in offices and Central funded Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).

Dr. Vineet Joshi, Secretary, Higher Education, in this regard, chaired a meeting on 12.09.2025 in hybrid mode with more than 170 participants comprises of Heads / faculties of Centrally funded Institutions, UGC, AICTE and officials of DoHE to take proactive steps during this period to ensure the success of Special Campaign 5.0 and surpass the achievements of previous campaigns and contribute to a cleaner, more organized and responsive government.

Special Campaign 5.0 will proceed in two phases: Preparatory Phase from 15th September to 30^th September 2025, followed by the Implementation Phase from 2nd October to 31st October 2025. Heads / faculties of Centrally funded Institutions, UGC, AICTE and officials of DoHE have been requested to set specific targets, identify pending references, and outline key areas for cleanliness and space management during the Preparatory Phase. Special attention will be given to record management, disposal of outdated materials, e-waste and the beautification of offices.

The Implementation Phase will focus on clearing pending matters, including MP's references, PMO and inter-ministerial communications, public grievances, and Parliamentary assurances etc. Participating offices will be required to report their progress on daily basis. The campaign also aims to promote sustainability and foster greater public engagement through social media, using the hashtag #SpecialCampaign5.0. The DoHE is committed to make Special Campaign 5.0 more successful by setting higher goals and expanding its efforts in cleanliness, record management and reducing pending matters. This year's campaign is aimed at surpassing the milestones of Special Campaign 4.0 by improving the efficiency of offices, enhancing digitalization efforts and accelerating the disposal of e-waste and outdated records.

During the last year, Special Campaign (SCDPM 4.0), the DoHE undertook significant efforts to address pending references and successfully covered around 1,094 campaign sites across the country.

Notable achievements during the last year campaign were as follows:

• Public Grievances: Resolved around 84% of public grievances, disposing of 564 out of 665 cases.

• Public Grievance Appeals: Resolved around 81% of public grievances in the appeal stage, disposing of 112 out of 138 cases.

• Record Management: Over 1,62,302 Physical files were reviewed out of which 99,750 files were weeded out. Besides this, 31,168 e-files were put up for review out of which 7,773 were reviewed and 4528 were closed.

• Space Optimization: Reported space optimization by HEIs, AICTE and UGC is approximately 3.46 lakh sq. ft., contributing to efficient space management.

• Revenue Generation: Reported revenue generation of approximately Rs. 1.91 crore from HEIs, AICTE, and UGC.

• Best Practices and Innovative Sustainability Efforts: The DoHE and Central Funded Higher Education Institutions drive sustainability through innovative initiatives: murals at Shastri Bhawan promoting environmental awareness, organic waste recycling via vermicomposting at CU Jammu and Tripura University, eco-friendly crafts at NIT Silchar, a Vintage Park at NIT Jamshedpur showcasing sustainable reuse and many more.

Several of these initiatives were also featured in the “Workshop on Good Governance Practices” held on 23.12.2024. Highlights included the environmental murals by the DoHE, e-waste reuse and campus beautification at NIT Silchar and a dress made from waste bottles by Rajiv Gandhi University.

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