New Delhi:
President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu, will confer the Swachh Survekshan 2024–25 Awards at a national ceremony organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, on 17 July. The event will also be attended by Union Minister Sh. Manohar Lal and Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs, Sh. Tokhan Sahu.
This marks the ninth edition of Swachh Survekshan, the world’s largest urban cleanliness assessment under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U). A total of 78 awards will be presented across four major categories, recognising the efforts of cities and states in promoting urban sanitation and cleanliness.
The awards will include recognitions under the Super Swachh League Cities, top three clean cities in five population-based categories, special awards for Ganga towns, cantonment boards, Safai Mitra Suraksha and Mahakumbh efforts, and State/UT-level recognitions for the most promising clean cities.
According to the ministry, “Swachh Survekshan 2024–25 represents a smart and structured approach, evaluating urban cleanliness and service delivery using 10 parameters and 54 indicators.” These include waste processing capacity, citizen engagement, cleanliness of public spaces and sustainability initiatives.
Over 3,000 assessors carried out inspections in every ward across the country over 45 days, with assessments conducted at more than 11 lakh households. The ministry reported that citizen engagement for the current edition reached a historic high, involving over 14 crore participants through platforms such as face-to-face surveys, the Swachhata App, MyGov, and social media.
This year’s edition has introduced a unique competitive tier named the Super Swachh League (SSL), which includes cities that have ranked among the top three in at least one of the past three years and are in the top 20 per cent of their population category in 2024–25. The SSL is designed to push top-performing cities to even higher benchmarks while inspiring others to improve.
For the first time, cities have been grouped into five population categories: Very Small Cities (below 20,000), Small Cities (20,000–50,000), Medium Cities (50,000–3 lakh), Big Cities (3–10 lakh), and Million-Plus Cities (above 10 lakh). Each category has been judged using parameters relevant to its demographic scale, allowing even the smallest cities to compete on an equitable basis.
Highlighting the theme of “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”, this year’s survey continues to promote sustainable waste management practices. The government stated that Swachh Survekshan has grown from its initial coverage of 73 cities in 2016 to more than 4,500 cities in its current edition, becoming a defining initiative in shaping urban India’s cleanliness movement.
The awards ceremony will celebrate not only the cleanest cities but also those demonstrating innovation, inclusivity and sustainable urban living practices.
