INDORE GETS CLEANEST CITY TAG FOR 5TH YEAR IN A ROW
The President of India Ram Nath Kovind on November 20, 2021, conferred awards to 342 cleanest cities of India at the ‘Swachh Amrit Mahotsav’ as part of Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban 2.0 by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi. More than 300 awards under various categories were given for recognizing the cleanliness and sanitation efforts of the towns, cities, States, and Union Territories under various initiatives of Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban such as the Swachh Survekshan 2021, Safai Mitra Suraksha Challenge, and certifications for Garbage Free Star rating for cities.
WHICH IS THE CLEANEST CITY IN INDIA 2021?
Under the Swachh Survekshan 2021, Indore has been awarded the ‘Cleanest City’ of India award for the 5th consecutive year in the ‘more than 1 lakh’ population category followed by Surat and Vijayawada on the 2nd and 3rd rank respectively. Vita, Lonavala, and Sasvad cities from Maharashtra have ranked first, second, and third Cleanest Cities respectively in the ‘less than 1 lakh’ population category. Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh emerged as the ‘Fastest Mover City’ in the ‘more than 1 lakh’ population category thus securing a place among the top 100 cities at 87th position. In other categories, Varanasi won the ‘Best Ganga Town’, Ahmedabad Cantonment won ‘India’s Cleanest Cantonment’ followed by Meerut Cantonment and Delhi Cantonment.
CLEANEST STATE IN INDIA 2021
Under the Swachh Survekshan 2021, Chhattisgarh has been awarded as the ‘Cleanest State’ of India for the 3rd consecutive year in the ‘more than 100 Urban Local Bodies’. Jharkhand won the ‘Cleanest State’ of India for the second time in the ‘less than 100 Urban Local Bodies’ category. Karnataka emerged as the ‘Fastest Mover State’ in the ‘more than 100 Urban Local Bodies’ and Mizoram emerged as the ‘Fastest Mover State’ in the ‘less than 100 Urban Local Bodies’.
Top performer cities, states under first Safai mitra Suraksha Challenge
Under the Safaimitra Suraksha Challenge, the top performer cities are Indore, Navi Mumbai, Nellore, and Dewas across different population categories among 246 participating cities while the top performer states are Chhattisgarh and Chandigarh. Under the Star Rating Protocol of Garbage Free Cities, 9 cities were certified as 5-star cities while 143 cities were certified as 3-star. The nine 5-star rated cities are Indore, Surat, New Delhi Municipal Council, Navi Mumbai, Ambikapur, Mysuru, Noida, Vijayawada, and Patan.
Top 10 cleanest cities in India: Indore, Surat, Vijayawada, Navi Mumbai, Pune, Raipur, Bhopal, Vadodara, Visakhapatnam, Ahmedabad
SWACHH SURVEKSHAN 2021: SIGNIFICANCE
The President of India Ram Nath Kovind on November 20, 2021, conferred the awardees of Swachh Survekshan (SS) 2021 at the ‘Swachh Amrit Mahotsav’ which was organized by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi on November 20, 2021. The ‘Swachh Amrit Mahotsav’ marked the celebration of the achievements of cities and states in India over the past seven years of Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban. Launched on October 1, 2020, the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 focuses on ensuring complete access to sanitation facilities for all. Over the years, the world’s largest urban cleanliness survey Swachh Survekshan has become an effective tool for innovations and best practices in sanitation and waste management across urban India. The Swachh Survekshan 2021 holds significance as it is commemorating the ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ and recognizes the efforts of Safai Mitras (frontline sanitation workers) amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the pandemic, the 6th edition of Swachh Survekshan (SS2021) was conducted in a record time of 28 days. A total of 4,320 cities participated. The SS2021 saw over 5 crores citizens’ feedback compared to 1.87 crores in 2020. In Swachh Survekshan 2021, Maharashtra won 92 awards which is the highest by any State this year followed by Chhattisgarh with 67 awards. Additionally, five cities – Indore, Surat, Navi Mumbai, New Delhi Municipal Council, and Tirupati were categorized as ‘Divya’ (Platinum) under a new performance category Prerak Daaur Samman in SS2021.
RELATED: PM MODI LAUNCHED SBM-URBAN 2.0 & AMRUT 2.0
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 and AMRUT 2.0. The missions have been designed to make all our cities ‘Garbage Free’ and ‘Water Secure. The Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 has been launched with the aim of making the cities garbage-free. PM Narendra Modi said while launching the mission "that with the 2nd phase, we also aim sewage and safety management, making cities water-secure and ensuring that dirty nullahs don't merge into rivers."
SWACHH BHARAT MISSION-URBAN 2.0
- SBM-U 2.0, announced in Budget 2021-22, is the continuation of SBM-U first phase. The government is trying to tap safe containment, transportation, disposal of faecal sludge, and septage from toilets. SBM-U first phase was launched on 2nd October 2014 aiming at making urban India Open Defecation Free (ODF) and achieving 100% scientific management of municipal solid waste. It lasted till October 2019. It will be implemented over five years from 2021 to 2026 with an outlay of Rs.1.41 lakh crore
- Aim: It focuses on source segregation of garbage, reduction in single-use plastic and air pollution, by effectively managing waste from construction and demolition activities and bioremediation of all legacy dump sites. Under this mission, all wastewater will be treated properly before it is discharged into water bodies, and the government is trying to make maximum reuse a priority.
- Mission outcomes: All statutory towns will become ODF+ certified (focuses on toilets with water, maintenance and hygiene). All statutory towns with less than 1 lakh population will become ODF++ certified (focuses on toilets with sludge and septage management). 50% of all statutory towns with less than 1 lakh population will become Water+ certified (aims to sustain toilets by treating and reuse of water). All statutory towns will be at least 3-star Garbage Free rated as per MoHUA’s Star Rating Protocol for Garbage Free cities.
PROGRESS UNDER SBM-U PHASE-I
4,324 urban local bodies have been declared Open Defecation Free, which has been made possible through the construction of more than 66 lakhs individual household toilets and over 6 lakhs community/public toilets, far exceeding the Mission’s targets. Digital enablements such as Swachhata App, the digital grievance redressal platform introduced by MoHUA in 2016, has reinvented the way in which citizen grievance redressal is managed. Swachh Survekshan, the world’s largest urban cleanliness survey covering over 4,000 Urban Local Bodies was initiated under SBM-Urban in 2016.
2ND PHASE OF AMRUT MISSION (AMRUT 2.0)
The Prime Minister also launched the second phase of Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT 2.0). The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is the nodal ministry for the scheme.
AMRUT MISSION 2.0
It is the continuation of the AMRUT mission launched in June 2015 to ensure that every household has access to a tap with the assured supply of water and a sewerage connection.
AMRUT 2.0 aims to provide 100% coverage of water supply to all households in around 4,700 ULBs (Urban Local Bodies). It also seeks to promote Atmanirbhar Bharat through encouraging Startups and Entrepreneurs (Public Private Partnership).
Objectives: It will build upon the progress of AMRUT to address water needs, rejuvenate water bodies, better manage aquifers, reuse treated wastewater, thereby promoting a circular economy of water. It will provide 100% coverage of sewerage and septage in 500 AMRUT cities. Recycling and reuse of treated wastewater is expected to cater to 20% of total water needs of the cities and 40% of industrial demand. Under the Mission, fresh water bodies will be protected from getting polluted to make natural resources sustainable. Pey Jal Survekshan will be conducted in cities to ascertain equitable distribution of water, reuse of wastewater and mapping of water bodies.
PERFORMANCE OF AMRUT PHASE-I
1.14 crore water tap connections have been provided taking total connections to 4.14 crore in AMRUT cities. Credit rating work has been completed in 470 cities. Of which, 164 cities have received Investable Grade Rating (IGR), including 36 cities with rating of A- or above. Rs 3,840 crore has been raised through Municipal Bonds by 10 ULBs. The Online Building Permission System has been implemented in 2,471 cities including 455 AMRUT cities. This reform has helped improve India’s rank in Ease of Doing Business in construction permits to 27 in Doing Business Report (DBR) 2020 of World Bank from 181 in 2018. 89 lakh conventional streetlights have been replaced with energy efficient LED lights, leading to estimated energy savings per annum & reduction in CO2 emission.
IMPACT OF THE LAUNCH
Swachh Bharat and AMRUT Mission have both succeeded in bringing about transformative changes in the lives of people since their launch. The missions have not only transformed the urban landscape by adopting scientific approach and engaging citizens, but under Swachh Bharat Mission, urban areas of 35 States/ UTs have become open defecation free. Besides this, over 73 lakh toilets have been built across India that has improved health and sanitation across the country and about 97% homes have door to door waste collection facilities. The missions signify a step towards effectively addressing the challenges of rapidly urbanizing India. They will also aim to achieve the targets set under UN's Sustainable Development Goals 2030.
WHAT IS SWACHH SURVEKSHAN?
Launched as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission, it is an annual survey of cleanliness, hygiene and sanitation in cities and towns across India. The ranking exercise is taken up by the Government of India to assess rural and urban areas for their levels of cleanliness and active implementation of Swachhata mission initiatives in a timely and innovative manner. Swachh Survekshan-Urban is conducted by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. Swachh Survekshan-Rural is conducted by the Ministry of Jal Shakti. Earlier, it was conducted by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation which was merged with the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation to make a new Ministry of Jal Shakti in 2019.
TEST YOURSELF
Q.1 Under the Swachh Survekshan 2021, which of the following cities has been awarded the ‘Cleanest City’ of India award for the 5th consecutive year?
- Indore: ANSWER
- Vijayawada
- Bhopal
- Surat
Q.2 Which of the following states has been awarded as the ‘Cleanest State’ of India for the 3rd consecutive year in the ‘more than 100 Urban Local Bodies?
- Maharashtra
- Tamil Nadu
- Chhattisgarh: ANSWER
- Arunachal Pradesh
Q.3 Recently, Which of the following has launched Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 and AMRUT 2.0?
- Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
- Ministry of Jal Shakti
- Prime Minister of India: ANSWER
- None of the above
Q.4 Which of the following Union Ministries is the nodal agency for the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme?
- Ministry of Rural Development
- Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs: ANSWER
- Ministry of Jal Shakti
- All of the above
Q.5 Which of the following statements is/are incorrect in the reference to the Swachh Survekshan Mission?
- Launched as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission, it is an annual survey of cleanliness, hygiene and sanitation in cities and towns across India.
- Swachh Survekshan-Urban is conducted by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
- Swachh Survekshan-Rural is conducted by the Ministry of Rural Development: ANSWER
- None of the above
