Anand Mahindra lauds IAS officer as Lucknow betters cleanliness ranking from 41st to 3rd: ‘A city close to my heart…'

Mint

a day ago

Anand Mahindra recently lauded the inspiring efforts of IAS officer Inderjit Singh, who currently serves as the Municipal Commissioner of Lucknow.
This commendation came after Singh, disheartened by Lucknow's low ranking in the Swachh Survekshan list, took matters into his own hands.
Ananda Mahindra, the chairman of Mahindra and Mahindra, jotted his thoughts about Lucknow, citing his personal connection with the city in an X (formerly Twitter) post on Monday.
'The city of Lucknow has always enjoyed a formidable reputation for its rich culture and cuisine. However, cleanliness was never part of that legacy. Common concerns included a shortage of dustbins, public spitting, and the scattering of waste during festivals,' he said on X.
He also shared his personal connection to the city, noting that the place held a special place in his heart as his mother grew up there and taught at an IT College before moving to Mumbai.
'So to hear about Lucknow becoming the third-ranked city in the Swachh Survekshan came as a very pleasant surprise, to put it mildly,' he wrote.
He credited IAS officer Inderjit Singh for putting efforts into the city's impressive transformation.
He concluded by calling Inderjit Singh his #MondayMotivation for being an agent of transformational change.
As described by Mahindra, Lucknow is known to have struggled with open waste dumping at major residential and commercial areas.
Thanks to Singh's efforts, Lucknow just jumped from Rank 41 to 3 in India's cleanest cities list. He is given the credit for turning garbage hills into green parks and waste into fuel.
Speaking of transformation under Singh, Mahindra also noted, 'It proves that when your purpose is clear and you have a sense of mission, no bureaucracy is insurmountable, no change is impossible, including changing mindsets.'
The comment section of the post is flooded with sentiments mirroring Mahindra's words.
An X user said, 'Lucknow's transformation is a testament to visionary leadership and dedicated public service. Salute to IAS Indrajeet Singh for proving that clean cities are not just dreams, but achievable missions. Indeed, purpose-driven change is unstoppable!' Netizens react to the post
Another user added a suggestion along with praising the man behind the change. 'Quite an achievement. But still a long way to go. Now the cleanliness & waste management has to be the top priority of all the cities.. infra can follow later.'