The Swachh Survekshan rankings are out and once again hold no surprises. The same cities have bagged the top slots—Indore and Surat top the table, followed by Navi Mumbai, Visakhapatnam, Bhopal, Vijayawada, New Delhi and so on. Bengaluru leapt to 125th position from its average ranking of 200 among 446 cities with 1 lakh population category. The 1 million population category for cities was scrapped in 2023, leading to some confusion over scores. Bengaluru appeared to have fallen several levels from being ranked 28 among 48 cities in 2021, and 43 in 2022, when in fact it has improved its performance in many categories: door-to-door waste collection, garbage segregation, cleanliness of residential and market areas, besides public toilets. It failed only in handling its infamous dump sites. The city also added a new feather in its cap with its first-ever ‘Water Plus’ ranking for sanitation.
The Swachh list can be termed an index of urban governance, and also a comment on the political leadership. Though giving ranks and percentages may appear to be an academic and pedantic exercise, it does give the cities a shine and something to aspire for. The only two Karnataka cities in the top 100 are Mysuru at 27th position, which is disappointing, considering it had bagged top slot in 2016, while Hubballi-Dharwad at rank 87 comes as a big pleasant surprise. The dusty North Karnataka city was notorious for its filth and scavenging pigs. Quite obviously, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike and other civic bodies are striving to improve the way they work, and also collaborating with private agencies and residents. Bengaluru, which had hit the headlines as ‘Garbage City’ in 2017 with mounds of waste and rats running wild, has truly upped its game. Its active and committed band of resident welfare associations have worked with the Palike to make a huge difference.
Now that Bengaluru has managed to get a hold on garbage management, and can also lay claim to being a ‘Smart City’, it should aspire to build a cleaner ecosystem which is free of plastic. Though there is a declared ban on plastic bags, it is only partially successful. Ending the plastic menace is half the cleanliness battle won. The other factors the city needs to improve are civic infrastructure, transparency, traffic management and public transport. It also needs a greener urban landscape. Only then can the IT capital thump its chest and proudly talk of turning Brand Bengaluru into a reality.