Other Cities Should Follow The Indore Model
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.
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By Linus Garg
First publised on 2024-01-12 07:22:14
About the Author
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.
View all posts by this Author
Indore has claimed the top spot in the Swachh Survekshan 2023 to emerge as the cleanest city in India. It won this title for the seventh time. This year, it was joined by Surat as the joint topper, while Navi Mumbai was at the third place.
Ever since Prime Minister Modi announced the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in 2014 from the ramparts of the Red Fort, the mission to clean-up India's cities and towns has had a bumpy ride. While some cities like Indore and Surat went into mission mode early and have now made it a habit to keep them clean, most other cities, including Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Bengaluru, have not been serious about it. The result is that most of these cities are no cleaner than they were in 2014.
For any cleanliness mission to succeed, the involvement of the people, apart from the efforts of the municipal corporation and the safai karmacharis, is extremely necessary. Most Indians, by nature and habit, are not a clean people when it comes to public spaces. They might keep their homes in spic and span condition but care little about their immediate surroundings. Spitting indiscriminately, urinating in public places, throwing garbage here and there and generally being indifferent to cleanliness is a daily feature on Indian streets. This habit has to change if the Swachh Bharat abhiyan is to get the expected results.
Another thing that can be done to hasten the process of cleanliness across India is to follow the Indore and Surat models. Since these cities are regularly winning awards and remaining at the top spot, they are obviously doing most things right to make the cleanliness drive successful. Other cities will do well to study their methods and processes and implement them, after due changes to account for local factors, to get the results.
