Latest news with #SwachhSurvekshan2024-25
Time of India
11 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
NMC's lack of sync within cost Nagpur of clean city tag
1 2 Nagpur: The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) is preparing to raise formal objections over its 27th rank in the Swachh Survekshan 2024-25 with the ministry of housing and urban affairs. Despite scoring 9,328 out of 12,500 points — an improvement from last year — the city failed to secure the coveted "Clean City" tag or even a garbage-free city (GFC) star. But instead of external shortcomings, it is the civic body's internal dysfunction, lack of planning, and poor coordination that seem to have cost Nagpur its place among India's top clean cities. Officials continue to highlight notable initiatives like construction and demolition waste processing, compressed biogas plant, and biomining project at Bhandewadi. These efforts fell flat due to mismanagement, delayed execution, and the inability to present them effectively to central survey teams. Incredibly, key officials did not even review the official Swachh Survekshan toolkit, which details evaluation parameters, said sources in NMC. Apathy, infighting, and administrative inertia held the city back from improved rankings, sources added. When the Central evaluation team arrived in Nagpur, they encountered disarray — blazing fires at Bhandewadi dumping ground disrupted the schedule, while delays in biomining further damaged the city's image. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Do This Before Bed And Watch Your Tummy Shrink Beauty Ideas Read More Undo A major setback came with the sudden transfer of additional commissioner Aanchal Goyal, who laid out a comprehensive action plan. Sources in NMC claimed that deputy commissioner Vijay Deshmukh, in charge of solid waste management, took little interest in steering the campaign. Despite repeated underperformance, NMC never constituted a dedicated expert taskforce. Departments worked in silos, and no coherent strategy or roadmap was put in place for the survey. In 2022, NMC hired a Mumbai-based firm KPMG for Rs2.4 crore to handle documentation and data presentation. Though the firm offered six months of free service after their contract ended in December 2024, NMC failed to integrate its own officials with the firm—further eroding internal ownership and morale. Key public health engineering department officials were absent from planning and monitoring, despite their role in managing water bodies, sewage systems, and desilting operations. Even the civic chief did not issue any binding instructions to involve the department, resulting in yet another gap in coordination. "Responsibility was dumped solely on the solid waste management department, while other crucial wings — such as public health engineering, water supply, and toilet infrastructure — remained disengaged. Officials failed to share project documentation or collaborate, exposing a complete breakdown in unified planning," said the source. Even as municipal commissioner Abhijit Chaudhari says NMC will contest the survey results with the ministry of housing and urban affairs and demand a review, the civic body is now finally talking about building a more robust internal structure for future assessments.
Time of India
a day ago
- General
- Time of India
Clean sweep: Mira-Bhayandar bags first rank in '3-10 lakh population' category in Swachh Survekshan 2024-25; beats 4,589 cities
THANE: Mira-Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) has been awarded the first rank at the national level in the Swachh Survekshan 2024-25, outshining 4,589 cities across India. They were judged the best in the '3-10 lakh population' category. The corporation received the prestigious President's Award at a grand ceremony held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, where the President presented the honour. This recognition places Mira-Bhayandar at the forefront of cleanliness and sustainable urban management in the country. The city has also been declared a 5-Star Garbage-Free City and received the Water Plus Certification, showcasing its commitment to advanced waste management and environmental responsibility. The MBMC claimed that all this was possible due to the dedicated efforts of civic staff and citizens and also due to the implementation of innovative initiatives like QR-code-based waste tracking, composting using windrow technology, and daily sewage treatment of over 110 MLD. These efforts have not only enhanced sanitation but also strengthened public participation in cleanliness drives, said the MBMC press note. This national honour reflects the collective effort of the administration, sanitation workers, and residents, who have made cleanliness not just a duty, but a shared mission.
Time of India
a day ago
- General
- Time of India
Residents ‘dissatisfied' with city's Swachh survey ranking
1 2 Bhubaneswar: Residents have expressed their dissatisfaction on social media platforms over smart city Bhubaneswar securing 9th position in the Swachh Survekshan 2024-25 survey, whose results were announced in New Delhi on Thursday, with many claiming the ranking is not reflective of the ground reality. The capital city secured the spot among cities with populations between 3 lakh and 10 lakh, a category comprising 95 cities. In the previous edition of the survey, Bhubaneswar was ranked 34th among 446 cities, a scale five times larger than the current one. A post by Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) on X celebrating the city's ranking received 63 replies within 24 hours, the highest for any post by the civic body in recent times, with residents sharing images of uncollected rubbish, waterlogged roads and other sanitation issues. An user commented, "Great to hear. Best wishes. Some award should be initiated for the most polluted city in India also." Another user criticised the BMC's public relations efforts, stating, "Just visit lanes of different wards of BMC, to realise ground reality." Smaller towns like Chikiti and Aska in Ganjam district received national awards for their cleanliness measures, ranking second in the 'very small cities' and 'small cities' categories, respectively. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Is it legal? How to get Internet without paying a subscription? Techno Mag Learn More Undo Both towns were recognised by President Droupadi Murmu during the award ceremony held at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on Thursday, highlighting the contrast with Bhubaneswar's state-level recognition. Bikash Jena, a resident of Patia, said, "I don't understand when towns like Chikiti and Ganjam received national awards for being cleanest, how does Bhubaneswar receive an award for being cleanest in the state?" He added that it might be a consolation prize for Bhubaneswar. BMC faces calls to address the sanitation issues and improve the city's cleanliness standards, with residents urging the authorities to bridge the gap between rankings and reality.
Time of India
a day ago
- General
- Time of India
Unclean public toilets upset Trichy's gains
Trichy: Swachh Survekshan 2024-25, the national cleanliness ranking done by the Union govt, has placed Trichy in 49th spot among 95 cities participating in the 'big cities' category (population of 3-10 lakh). Tired of too many ads? go ad free now While Trichy retained the state's cleanest city tag in the category by scoring 8,239 marks, the overall state-level rank based on scores has slipped from '1' in the previous survey to '2' now. Coimbatore, which participated in the million plus population category, secured 8,347 marks and climbed to the top spot. Low scores in cleanliness of public toilets and source segregation of waste were blamed for Trichy's slide. Out of a total 12,500 marks, the survey earmarked 10,000 marks for 10 sections and 54 indicators including visible cleanliness, segregation and transportation of waste, access to sanitation, and citizen feedback. While Trichy scored full marks in remediation of dump sites, cleanliness of residential areas, cleanliness of market areas, and cleanliness of water bodies, the city did not score any marks in cleanliness of public toilets and only 14% marks in source segregation. Door-to-door waste collection has earned 70% marks for the city, despite the civic body outsourcing waste management. Despite scoring high marks in categories such as waste processing where several other participant cities scored low, nil mark secured by Trichy in upkeep of public toilets has helped other cities steal a march over it. Thus far, Trichy remained undisputed leader as state's cleanest city irrespective of the category. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Meanwhile, in the certification category for which 2,500 marks were assigned, Trichy secured ODF++ (Open Defecation Free) certification. This means that all community toilets are functioning and well-maintained, and sewage is not dumped in open drains. In Garbage Free City (GFC) category, which assesses cities for construction and demolition (C&D) waste management, no major TN cities including Trichy and Coimbatore scored marks out of 1,300 marks. Trichy corporation officials have expressed shock at the scores awarded in maintenance of public toilets. The city has around 400 public and community toilets maintained by SHGs. They wondered how the city could get zero in cleanliness of public toilets after being certified as ODF++. "We registered our disappointment for the scores in maintenance of public toilets and sought re-evaluation. Perhaps data could have been wrongly uploaded, we are awaiting a positive response," an official source said.
Time of India
a day ago
- General
- Time of India
Poor toilets, bad waste management drag down city's Swachh rank
So what pulled down Chennai in the all-India Swachh ranking this year? The answer is: Poor waste management and low sanitation standards at public toilets and waterbodies. The city slipped from fifth spot last year to 104th rank in Tamil Nadu in the Swachh Survekshan 2024-25 survey, results of which were released on Thursday. A total of 651 places in the state were ranked in the survey. Of the total 40 cities with more than 10 lakh population in the country, Ahmedabad, Bhopal, and Lucknow secured the top three ranks by scoring 100% in various categories, including door-to-door waste collection, cleanliness in residential areas, water bodies, and public toilets. Among them, Chennai district ranked 38th, with only 54% for door-to-door waste collection, 36% for source segregation, and 21% for waste generation and processing by the local body. You Can Also Check: Chennai AQI | Weather in Chennai | Bank Holidays in Chennai | Public Holidays in Chennai The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC), however, still claims it had rolled out several initiatives, including door-to-door waste collection, segregation rules for bulk waste generators, and fines for dumping garbage in public spaces. It said the citizen feedback was limited. Every day, around 6,150 tonnes of garbage is collected from the city. Night conservancy is also carried out in all residential, market, and commercial areas. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You To Read in 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Door-to-door collection of garbage is carried out in all zones. The collection has been privatized for solid waste management at 12 zones. Among these, two zones — Royapuram and Thiru Vi Ka Nagar — were recently outsourced but are yet to receive work orders. However, neither door-to-door collection nor waste segregation has been effectively carried out by either private contractors or corporation sanitary workers. Residents complain that vacant plots and dustbins have become dumping grounds. "Though door-to-door waste collection has been welcomed, sanitary workers dump garbage on the road claiming they would segregate it and take it to Kodungaiyur dump yard. However, they fail to do so. We are unable to use that road due to the foul smell, and it leads to various health hazards," said A Balaganesh, a resident of Kaladipet in Tiruvottiyur zone. Similarly, the survey revealed that the percentage of functional public toilets has reduced from 77 to 33 this year due to poor maintenance by the corporation. Though the corporation claimed it would hand over maintenance to private contractors, no steps have been taken. It is noted that the biomining process at Perungudi and Kodungaiyur dump yards is carried out at a slow pace, and the remediation of dumpsites is 33%. GCC commissioner J Kumaragurubaran said, "Compared to other districts, Chennai is doing well. However, the feedback received has been minimal, which is the primary reason for the drop in ranking. Outsourcing is the key to improving waste management in the city. Several zones are already maintained by private players, and the remaining will also be outsourced, which will ensure visible changes. " He added, "the number of complaints raised by the public is relatively lower in the privatized zones compared to the areas maintained by the corporation, even on social media platforms." Additionally, the GCC has planned to install CCTV cameras in 400 hotspots to monitor waste dumping in public places and impose penalties on violators. This, too, will be privatized soon.
