Latest news with #Swachh
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Chandigarh: MP Manish Tewari flags fluctuations in city's Swachh performance
A fortnight after Chandigarh was adjudged the second cleanest among big cities in India with a population of 3 to 10 lakh, Member of Parliament (MP) Manish Tewari raised concerns over the city's fluctuating performance in Swachh Survekshan over the years. MP Tewari said the cleanliness campaign should not be limited to rankings only, but there is a need for improvement and permanent change at the ground level. (HT File) Urging the MC to 'up its game', Tewari said that in the category of 'source segregation', the city's performance has shown a drastic drop – from 100% in 2023 to 14% in 2024-25. 'This defies all logic and needs to be investigated,' said the MP. Tewari had raised a question in the Parliament pertaining to the city's Swachh showing, asking the government whether it was aware that Chandigarh has failed to show improvement in categories of source segregation and garbage-free city despite being ranked under the Super Swacch League. The MP had also sought details of year-on-year performance in Swachh Sarevkshan since 2016, particularly in indicators related to source segregation, waste processing and door-to-door collection. He had also asked whether it is true that Chandigarh has consistently failed to achieve 100 % source segregation and if so, the reasons for the same. In response, Minister of State, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, Tokhan Sahu, besides providing the requisite data, revealed that large-scale citizen-contact programmes are being run in states and union territories to strengthen citizen participation, mass movements, and behavioural changes. Along with this, waste management methods are being improved through capacity-building in states and urban bodies and dissemination of success stories. MP Tewari said the cleanliness campaign should not be limited to rankings only, but there is a need for improvement and permanent change at the ground level. Urging the Chandigarh MC to improve its work and ensure transparency and uniformity in data reporting and overall cleanliness efforts, he pointed out that Chandigarh's recent claim to the second place was not in the original open category, but in a new category of cities with a population of 3 to 10 lakh. In 2016, Chandigarh stood second in the category of cities with 10 lakh-plus population. He also criticised the city's continued failure to achieve a 5-star rating under the garbage-free city certification, stating, 'Despite being promoted as 'City Beautiful', we are consistently getting only 3 stars. It should have been a cent percent rating.'
Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
AP aims to achieve legacy waste free status by year end through effective waste management
Vijayawada: Stating that the effective treatment of solid and liquid waste by urban local bodies (ULBs) plays a key role in achieving better sanitation, municipal administration and urban development (MAUD) minister P Narayana emphasised the need for proper treatment of solid and liquid waste in municipalities and municipal corporations to secure better and top ranks in the Swachh Survekshan Ranking Leagues. Participating as the chief guest at the one-day state-level workshop on information, education and communication (IEC) and capacity building organised by Swachh Andhra Corporation here on Monday, Narayana reaffirmed the state govt's commitment to transform AP into a Legacy Waste Free state by the end of 2025 by completely processing the 85 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste left behind by the previous YSRCP govt along with the 20 lakh metric tonnes of freshly generated legacy waste in ULBs in the state. "Andhra Pradesh is on track to process and clear all 85 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste by October 2, 2025, and the processing of freshly generated remaining 20 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste would be completed by December," Narayana stated while addressing the workshop. On the occasion, Narayana announced that the govt will initiate works on the establishment of six new Waste to Energy plants at Rajamahendravaram, Nellore, Kadapa, Kurnool, Tirupati, and Vijayawada in addition to the existing Guntur and Visakhapatnam plants for 100% processing of the waste generated in the state. Narayana further stressed the need to bring complete behavioural change among the citizens by taking up sensitisation activities to promote sanitation management practices in the state. MAUD Principal Secretary Suresh Kumar, CDMA Director Sampat Kumar, Swachh Andhra Pradesh Corporation Chairman Kommareddy Pattabhi Ram, and others were present.
Hindustan Times
25-07-2025
- Hindustan Times
Now, AI vigil on garbage collection, encroachment, too
Prayagraj Municipal Corporation (PMC) has adopted artificial intelligence (AI)-based monitoring of garbage, potholes and encroachments on main roads and bylanes on a trial basis, Prayagraj Smart City manager (IT) Mani Shanker Tripathi said. (For representation) It has installed AI-equipped cameras on its two quick response team (QRT) vehicles. The AI would process information regarding unattended garbage, potholes and encroachments feed them to a server. The cameras have a three-meter-wide angle besides front view capacity of up to 50 meters. 'So far, the trial is yielding positive results. It has traced, analysed and reported information about potholes, unattended garbage dumped on roadsides besides bylanes, debris, uneven manhole covers and defunct streetlights. The results provided by the AI were cross-checked through physical verification and were found to be error-free,' he said. As per the official, if the trial is successful, such cameras would then be installed in all garbage collection vans used in the city's 80 wards. Meanwhile, additional municipal commissioner Deepshikha Pandey said the new set-up would not only help update PMC officials about daily collection of garbage from each and every road, but also help maintain a vigil on roadside encroachments and dumping of debris. This would help improve the ranking of the city in the next Swachh survey, she added Also, Prayagraj is the first city in the state where such a monitoring system is introduced, officials said. Presently, 70 km of major roads are being monitored with the help of AI.
The Hindu
23-07-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Takeaways from the Swachh Survekshan
Rankings and celebrations apart, the ninth edition of Swachh Survekshan, branded as the world's largest cleanliness survey, provides policy makers and city managers a reality check on urban sanitation and waste management, and a reliable database. The annual survey steered by Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM)-Urban had not only over 4,500 cities competing, compared to less than 100 in 2016, but was also backed by elaborate assessments and third party verification and further bolstered by feedback from 140 million city dwellers. From segregation, collection, transportation, and management of waste to the welfare of sanitation workers and grievance redressal, the 10 parameters of the survey are comprehensive. The survey has emerged as an effective driver of competition and movement in city sanitation. It also provides a measure of the gaps in India's journey towards clean cities. Different population sizes The advent of Super Swachh League this year was an overdue twist to break the stalemate at the top of the rankings. Indore, Surat, and Navi Mumbai — all mascots of cleanliness for a while — entered this new space along with 20 other cities of different population sizes. Members of the League could create new benchmarks and compete among themselves while yielding space to new aspirants to enter clean city ranks. That is how Ahmedabad, Bhopal, and Lucknow could break into the top as India's cleanest cities this time in the million-plus category, with another 12 receiving ranks in their own population segments. Swachh Survekshan 2024-25 appeared focused on faster democratisation of city cleanliness. The expansion of population categories from two to five, starting from cities with a population of less than 20,000 to those with a million-plus population, provided a fairer platform for cities to perform. Those hitherto lagging are now catching up. Odisha is an example. Bhubaneswar moved up from the 34th to the 9th rank; small towns such as Aska and Chikiti worked their way to the top three clean cities in their categories; and mid-size cities including Rourkela, Cuttack, and Berhampur moved considerably upwards. These trends create hope that cleanliness is not a preserve of only certain States. Cities from the south are yet to make any big mark in the clean city show with Bengaluru being the least inspirational. Hyderabad, Tirupati, Vijayawada, Guntur, and Mysuru were the best in the region. The National Capital Region presents an interesting medley: while the New Delhi Municipal Council areas and Noida ranked best for meticulous sanitation implementation, Delhi, Gurugram, and Ghaziabad improved their ranks irrespective of the negative reports they received in the public domain. The clean city basket has grown larger since one promising clean city was picked up from each State based on its progress and potential. Once cities are positively stamped, they tend to stay in the aspirational course. Understood this way, the 78 Swachh awards given were not too many. Setting up the cleanest cities as mentors to the most underperforming ones could help in the proliferation of multiple good practices among urban local bodies (ULBs). While Indore is a veteran in segregating the last gram of waste into six buckets at source — dry, wet, domestic hazardous, plastic, sanitary and e-waste; Surat has been making good revenue by selling sewage-treated water. Pune's waste management is anchored on cooperatives formed by ragpickers. Visakhapatnam made an eco-park from remediated legacy waste site. Lucknow produced an iconic waste wonder park. The Kuberpur area in Agra, once a toxic dumpsite, transformed to 47 acres of green, by engaging bioremediation and biomining technologies. Tourist destinations and places of high footfall received special emphasis in the survey. Prayagraj was awarded in the category of Ganga towns, and special recognition was extended to the recent Maha Kumbh for its sanitation management. India accounts for less than 1.5% of international tourist arrivals. Cities need to do much more than an occasional cleanliness drive to enhance tourist experience. The theme this year The theme of 'reduce, reuse, and recycle (RRR)', advocated by the 2025 survey, carries the prospect of jobs, enterprise, and invigoration of self-help groups. The theme of the last survey was 'waste to wealth'. We are yet to raise the billions of rupees out of waste that is possible. For this, policy needs to better incentivise investors. Waste-to-energy plants are gaining traction but the private sector may be concerned about commercial viability. Citizens are yet to take meaningful action even though the RRR approach is entrenched in India's ancient traditions. While a universal resentment against open defecation has been achieved by SBM, a behaviour change movement fostering intolerance against waste and fighting against consumerism has been tough to initiate. As more cities get identified as hubs of growth, we must prioritise the management of 1.5 lakh tonnes of solid waste generated every day. A lot will depend on delivery at decentralised levels, especially by ULBs in enforcing segregation, collection, transport, and processing, including of the more challenging plastic and e-waste. The business of waste management in cities may look chaotic, but it remains possible. The rise of Surat from being a place of garbage three decades ago to the top place in the sanitation chart last year shows that this is a possibility in all cities in India. Akshay Rout, Former Director General, Swachh Bharat Mission.
Time of India
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Not so swachh: MCG, MCM among 81 civic bodies in Haryana that fudged waste data
Gurgaon: After the Swachh Survekshan results were declared on July 17, city residents spoke about alleged data manipulation. They asked how Gurgaon could improve its rankings from 140 last year to 41 this year despite construction debris and garbage strewn across the roads and public places. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It has come to light now among 's 87 municipalities, 81 local bodies — including NCR cities Gurgaon, Faridabad and Manesar — provided inaccurate information by claiming 100% door-to-door waste collection during the survey. Several urban local bodies (ULBs) recorded less than 60% coverage, with some falling below 40%. According to the data accessed by TOI, significant discrepancies were found between reported and actual door-to-door waste collection coverage across several cities in Haryana. Gurgaon's claim of 100% doorstep collection contrasted sharply with the actual survey finding of 59% coverage. commissioner Pradeep Dahiya told TOI, "We will probe the matter and a report will be sought from the nodal officer of Swachh Bharat Mission. We will submit it to the directorate and wait for their review on the same." In the backdrop of the revelations, Haryana ULB department has written to all municipalities, highlighting such "significant misreporting" indicates serious negligence, stemming from either oversight failures or intentional data falsification. The letter, sent on July 19 to the municipalities, also says this behaviour "damages the state's reputation" and affects its position in national Swachh Survekshan rankings. The department has instructed municipalities to levy penalties on agencies that have misrepresented facts in their door-to-door waste collection and waste transportation services data on the Swachh portal. The department mandates issuing show-cause notices to the respective SBM nodal officers of these ULBs. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Report within 7 days Both deputy municipal commissioners and municipal commissioners must submit a detailed factual report to headquarters within seven days, including recommendations for issuing chargesheets against relevant officials under applicable service regulations, read the letter. The communication also revealed that while most Haryana ULBs reported 100% doorstep waste collection coverage on the SBM portal, independent assessment for Swachh Survekshan in 2024 showed considerably lower figures. The ULB department instructed commissioners and deputy municipal commissioners to submit their findings on this matter by July 26. The data inconsistencies extended to other cities as well. Manesar's reported 100% coverage was found to be only 72% in reality. Faridabad's claim of 100% coverage was contradicted by ground surveys showing only 35% actual coverage, revealing a substantial 65% gap. Similarly, Nuh's claim of complete coverage was discovered to be just 54%. Palwal and Panchkula demonstrated actual coverage rates of 57% and 61% respectively, despite claiming 100%. The surveys also revealed Rewari achieving 73% coverage, while Bhiwani registered 48%. "This gross misreporting reflects a grave dereliction of duty either due to supervisory failure or deliberate data manipulation. It tarnishes the image of the state, undermines our ranking in national assessments and jeopardises funding and credibility under the Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 Urban," read the letter sent by the ULB to the municipalities on Saturday. However, several cities demonstrated commendable performance in waste collection services. Karnal's reported 100% coverage was largely accurate, with surveys confirming 98% implementation. Panipat and Samalkha achieved impressive 99% coverage, whilst Rohtak reached 96%. Ganaur's claim of 100% coverage was fully validated by the ground survey. Among the cities that performed well, Karnal also submitted 100% doorstep waste collection coverage and the survey found it to be 98% on the ground. Panipat and Samalkha got 99%, Rohtak got 96%, and Ganaur's claim matched with the survey at 100%.
