New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Tuesday bestowed with the Global Goalkeeper Award by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for the Swachh Bharat mission at a ceremony on the sidelines of the 74th UN General Assembly session in New York.

The PM said the honour conferred on him does not belong to him but to the millions of Indians who participated in the mission.

He also said that the award holds more significance as he received it on the occasion of 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

"This honour is not mine but of the crores of Indians who not only fulfilled the Swachh Bharat dream but also made it a part of their daily lives," Modi said after receiving the award from Microsoft founder Bill Gates. He said that while the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan was initiated by his government, it was the people of the country who took the movement forward.

"This is a proof that if the manpower of 130 crore people gets involved in fulfilling any one resolution, then any challenge can be won," Modi said.

Moid government launched the Swachh Bharat Mission in 2014 and carried out large scale construction of household toilets, community and public toilets and solid waste management.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's Global Goalkeeper's Award is accorded every year to individuals for their achievement in a specific sustainable development goal. Prior to Modi, the previous winners have been Prime Minister Erna Solberg of Norway and President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia

He said the Clean India Mission has also helped save thousands of lives, and cited a WHO report that said building toilets in homes helped save 300,000 lives. He cited a UNICEF study that said that every family with a toilet will be able to save Rs 50,000 a year, while a Bill and Melinda Gates report said that increase in sanitation has improved the BMI of women.

"I recall that Mahatma Gandhi said he believes that cleanliness is more important that independence. I am very happy that the dream of Mahatma Gandhi of cleanliness is going to become a reality."

Speaking on the massive scale construction of toilets in the country, Modi said: “In the last five years, a record more than 11 crore toilets were constructed. If this mission has benefited someone the most, it is the poor of this country and the women.”

Modi said that the construction of 11 crore toilets opened a new door of economic activity at the village level.

He said, "I have been told that in a report of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation it was found that in India due to better rural sanitation, heart problems in children have decreased, and there has been an improvement in Body Mass Index of women."

The Prime Minister said that India is close to achieving its sanitation target and the country is also working steadfastly on other missions as well. "Through Fit India movement we are promoting fitness and preventive healthcare," he underlined.

Modi said he was happy that through the Swachh Survekshan, there is a competition among the states in India to make it to the top in the cleanliness rankings.

"Many such mass movements are going on in India today. I have full faith in the ability of 1.3 billion Indians. I am confident that like the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, other missions will also be successful," he remarked.

(inputs from agencies)