Urban Cleanliness Drive
India Selects 50 Cities Across 24 States for New Cleanliness Initiative
Anonymous
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The initiative followed directions from Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 51st PRAGATI meeting. Cities were selected for economic, cultural, heritage, tourism, pilgrimage or administrative significance.
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In Hyderabad, implementation covers three municipal corporations—Greater Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Malkajgiri—while Warangal Municipal Corporation will run the programme in Warangal. Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation and Tirupati Municipal Corporation will oversee it in their respective cities.
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The Swachh Bharat Test Bed and Innovation Centre established in Durgapur was set up with CSIR-CMERI; a separate third startup cohort brought 13 startups on board in collaboration with IIT Kanpur.
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The programme also includes a Swachhata Behaviour Change Digital Kosh to give urban local bodies standardized advocacy and campaign resources, and is presented as a model that could inform work in more than 4,800 other statutory towns.
India has selected 50 cities across 24 states for the PRAGATI-50 initiative, a major push to transform urban cleanliness and sanitation MyCityLinks. The cities—including Dehradun, Hyderabad, Warangal, Visakhapatnam, and Tirupati—will become models for garbage-free living and waste management. Each city will develop its own action plan and be tracked against performance targets using technology.
The program flows from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's direction at the 51st PRAGATI meeting HyderabadMail. Cities were chosen for their economic, cultural, heritage, tourism, or administrative importance. The initiative is part of Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0, which aims to help other Indian cities replicate the model's success.
How Each City Will Tackle Waste and Sanitation
Cities will focus on visible cleanliness, solid-waste management, and used-water systems PioneerEdge. Each municipality has assigned officials to oversee progress. In Hyderabad, three municipal corporations—Greater Hyderabad, Cyberabad, and Malkajgiri—will run the program together HyderabadMail. Warangal Municipal Corporation leads efforts in Warangal, while Greater Visakhapatnam and Tirupati municipal corporations handle their own cities.
Progress will be tracked through technology-enabled monitoring and regular reviews MyCityLinks. The housing and urban affairs minister will oversee all progress. Citizen participation is a key part of the plan, including a WhatsApp complaints channel so residents can report sanitation issues directly.
Startups and Innovation Test Beds Drive Solutions
India has set up the Swachh Bharat Test Bed and Innovation Centre in Durgapur, built with CSIR-CMERI's help MyCityLinks. The centre is testing new sanitation technologies and practices. A third cohort of 13 startups joined the effort through a partnership with IIT Kanpur, bringing fresh ideas to waste and water challenges.
The program supports sanitation startups with funding and resources PioneerEdge. This allows smaller companies to test their products in real cities before scaling up. The innovation focus means solutions developed in PRAGATI-50 cities can be adapted for India's 4,800 other statutory towns.
Campaign Resources Help Cities Spread the Cleanliness Message
The government has created the Swachhata Behaviour Change Digital Kosh, a resource library with standardized advocacy and campaign materials MyCityLinks. Urban local bodies can use these ready-made tools to educate citizens about cleanliness and waste disposal. This ensures consistent, professional messaging across all 50 cities.
The behaviour-change approach recognizes that infrastructure alone cannot solve sanitation problems TheHindu. Citizens must want to keep their cities clean. By combining technology, startups, and community engagement, PRAGATI-50 aims to build habits that last. The results in these 50 cities will inform cleanliness efforts nationwide.
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