oppn parties Dirtiest Cities In India: Dubious Distinction For Bengal

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  • Allahabad HC said that the UP Police is acting as law unto themselves as they detained a person unlawfully even before his arrest
  • Kolkata witnesses traffic snarls on the first day of the Durga Puja festival as revellers start pnadal-hopping
  • Neha Bora was subsequently released and Dipke is to appear before a magistrate today at noon
  • Delhi Police detained Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke, Neha Bora of AISA, student leaders and supporters ahead of a rally in Connaught Place demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation. The protest followed the detention and jailing of two CJP leaders earlier in the week over demonstrations at Jantar Mantar
  • The Reserve Bank of India is considering further monetary tightening to counter capital outflows and increase the cost of betting against the rupee, according to bankers and analysts cited by Reuters. The measures follow recent rate increases and steps to drain liquidity as pressure on the currency and inflation concerns persist
  • India directed oil marketing companies to stop diverting sugar-based feedstocks for ethanol production in the 2026–27 supply year, according to a new tender issued on Friday. The companies have invited bids for 11 billion litres of ethanol made from alternatives including corn and broken rice, amid concerns about domestic sugar supplies and prices
  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India's trade imbalance with China was growing sharply and attributed the problem partly to restrictions on Indian goods and services entering the Chinese market. China subsequently said it was ready to work with India to address mutual economic and trade concerns; India's trade deficit with China reached $69 billion in the first half of FY2026–27, up 27% year-on-year
  • Indian equity benchmarks extended their recovery on Friday, with the Sensex rising 413.66 points to close at 74,729.27 and the Nifty 50 gaining 148.80 points to settle at 23,146.15. Information technology shares, including Tech Mahindra, Infosys and TCS, helped lift the indices
  • India defeated Zimbabwe by four wickets in the opening women's T20 International in Raipur, taking a 1–0 lead in the three-match series. Deepti Sharma and Niki Prasad combined in an 82-run stand after India's top order collapsed, helping the hosts chase down Zimbabwe's total of 114 for five
  • Indian wrestler Komal won bronze in the women's 59 kg category at the Under-23 World Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas, defeating Kazakhstan's Viktoriia Khusainova 7–2. Fellow Indian Amruta Pujari advanced to the women's 72 kg final after recording two pinfall victories
  • Indian shuttler Jagsher Singh Khangurra secured a bronze medal at the BWF World Junior Badminton Championships in Cairo
  • The Supreme Court of India upheld the Bombay High Court's decision quashing the 2020 write-off of ₹8,415 crore in additional tier-1 bonds issued by Yes Bank (Yes Bank). The court ruled that the bank's administrator lacked the authority to extinguish the bonds under the final reconstruction scheme, strengthening bondholders' claims
  • The Supreme Court issued notices to the Election Commission of India, Delhi Police and opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, in separate petitions concerning electoral-roll revision and protests held in Delhi on October 10–12. The court also directed the preservation of CCTV footage linked to allegations of police excesses
  • The Supreme Court ruled that a person converting from Hinduism to Islam cannot automatically claim backward-class reservation benefits in the new religious community solely on the basis of their previous caste status. The judgment upheld the Madras High Court's decision striking down a 2024 Tamil Nadu government order that permitted such certification for specified communities
  • The Election Commission of India ordered a Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls in 14 states and three Union Territories, using January 1, 2027, as the qualifying date for voter eligibility. The draft rolls are scheduled for publication on November 12, claims and objections will be accepted until December 11, and the final rolls are due on January 4, 2027
Delhi HC refuses to ban CJP's Tiranga rally at Central Park in Connaught Place today /////// Police says will control and regulate it /////// NDMC closes the park for the public on Friday and Saturday
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Dirtiest Cities In India: Dubious Distinction For Bengal

By Linus Garg
First publised on 2024-01-19 06:59:09

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.

Is it a coincidence that the 10 dirtiest cities in India, as disclosed in Swachh Sarvekshan 2023, with Howrah getting the dubious distinction of being the dirtiest in the country, are in West Bengal or does it point to something bigger? The other 9 cities are Kalyani, Madhyagram, Krishnanagar, Asansol, Rishra, Bidhannagar, Kanchrapara, Kolkata, and Bhatpara. The scores of all cities, except Kolkata and Bhatpara, are below 1000 which is a disgrace. With Kolkata becoming much cleaner in recent years and New Town (a smart city) setting an example in cleanliness, it is strange that other cities, including parts of Kolkata, have not moved up in the cleanliness index.

People in Bengal are generally clean. This is evident from the fact that homes in Bengal are always spic and span. But the same cannot be said for the civic sense of a large percentage of the population. Many people in the state are prone to throw garbage at unauthorized places, spit and urinate (lack of easily accessible and clean public toilets is the main reason) in public places and otherwise display a complete lack of community responsibility when it comes to cleanliness. Also, with footpaths completely occupied by hawkers, the amount of refuse they generate daily is a big problem. The hawkers show complete disdain in matters of keeping the surroundings clean. For instance, while all roadside eateries keep drums for throwing waste nearby, few of them protest if customers throw disposable cups and plates on the road.

Conservancy workers have a hard time collecting the mountain of refuse generated daily on the streets in cities and towns of Bengal. Streets in most parts of Kolkata, except areas where wholesale markets are located, are now regularly cleaned two times a day. But the same cannot be said for other towns. There is no accountability and the chalta hai attitude has meant that while the rest of India India gets cleaner, cities and towns in Bengal cannot keep pace. The people of Bengal have to collectively display better civic sense in matters of cleanliness if the state is to shed this dubious distinction. 

picture courtesy: Ei Samay (caption ours)

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