With 4 lakh app downloads, Mumbai civic body hopes for better show in Swachh survey

Last year, the BMC was ranked a poor 29th.

With more than 4 lakh citizens downloading the Swachhata-MoHUA application this year against a paltry 6,000 last year, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is confident of improving its ranking in the Swachh Survekshan Survey-2018. The cleanliness survey began in January and ended on March 10. The survey results will be announced on March 15.

Last year, the BMC was ranked a poor 29th, a drop of 19 ranks from 2016. The top 10 cleanest cities had scored above 400 in the citizen feedback parameter, while Mumbai bagged only 299 in that category.

Municipalities were also rated on their promptness to act on complaints received via Swachhata app. The application was created by NGO Janaagraha for the Centre. The BMC has resolved 8 lakh complaints within 24 hours since December, showed its data. “We are confident of improving our ranking as the number of app users in the city has increased. Last year, we had scored poorly in the citizen feedback category,” said Vijay Singhal, additional municipal commissioner of the solid waste management department.

To fare better this year, the BMC had appointed an independent agency which asked citizens to download the app. It had also campaigned on Twitter and requested people to vote. The BMC conducted ward-level competitions and gave certificates to the cleanest hospitals, restaurants, hotels and markets.