Swachh Survekshan: Central officials to check city’s cleanliness soon

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is gearing up for the visit by a team of Central government officials this month to inspect the city, ahead of the Swachh

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is gearing up for the visit by a team of Central government officials this month to inspect the city, ahead of the Swachh Survekshan 2020.

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The nationwide cleanliness survey is held every year, as a part of the Swachh Bharat (Clean India) Mission, during which cities are ranked on the basis of their cleanliness quotient.

According to BMC officials, the team from Delhi is expected to arrive on any day between December 15 and 30 to inspect the city’s cleanliness and its progress on the issue of open defecation.

Kiran Dighavkar, nodal officer for BMC’s Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, said, “We made preparations for the inspection throughout the year and are gearing up for the team to visit from Delhi. The officials are expected after 10 days.”

The Central government team will also conduct interviews of citizens at random spots to get a better insight of the city’s cleanliness.

According to BMC officials, civic workers have started sweeping the streets twice a day and are also planning to use specialised machines with brushes, instead of the cleaning manually, to better the city’s score.

Meanwhile, recently-elected mayor Kishori Pednekar has placed waste segregation and plastic-free Mumbai among her top priorities to better the city’s rankings in the survey. “I have been getting complaints from residents alleging that they segregate waste at source but those who collect the waste do not follow segregation. This defeats the purpose and my aim will be to change this practice,” she said.

This year, BMC aims to achieve a five-star rating, of the total seven stars, on which the Centre ranks cities. Mumbai’s ranking had dropped by 31 places to 49 this year, from the 18th spot in 2018, when it was ranked the cleanest city in the state.