Mumbai: In the recently out Swachh Sarvekshan 2019 results, Mumbai has dropped 30 ranks on the list of cleanest cities in India. Last year, the city was 18th cleanest in India; however, this year, it has been ranked 49th. Swachh Sarvekshan is a pan-India exercise conducted by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs to assess cleanliness in urban India. The ministry surveyed 423 cities from January to March 10, 2019.
As many as 12,635 citizens from Mumbai participated in the exercise and Mumbai got 2-star ratings in the Garbage Free City ranking. A BMC official blamed non-payment of the cess for the two-star rating.
“To participate in the survey, BMC has to charge a minor cess from the citizens. However, we already charge property tax, and this cess would burden Mumbai residents. Due to non-payment of the cess, our rating has been reduced.
The BMC is already thinking of withdrawing from this annual survey,” the civic official said. The city was ranked 10th in 2016, 29th in 2017 and 18th in 2018. It had also won the award of cleanest state capital in 2018. This year, it has won the award of ‘Best innovation and Practices’.
The Congress corporator and leader of the opposition, Ravi Raja questioned the approach of the BMC. “How have we dropped 30 ranks? What is BMC’s approach to maintenance and cleanliness in the city,” questioned Raja. The Praja Foundation director, Milind Mhaske blamed BMC for being obstinate depite having resources. “The BMC is the richest civic body in Asia. Despite having resources, why cannot BMC clean the city properly,” asked Mhaske.
However, he said there needs to be a clarity of thought on the part of Ministry of the Urban Development. “The Urban Development Ministry should consider city-centric problems. Uniform parameters don’t work every time,” said Mhaske. Indore is the cleanest city as per the 2019 survey.
