Dirty Delhi ranks in bottom 100 of India's clean city list

NEW DELHI: It may be the nation's capital but Delhi is so filthy that it ranks among the bottom 100 in a list of 476 municipal areas of India assessed for cleanliness. It stands at a lowly 379. But its elite zone, administered by the New Delhi Municipal Corporation, ranks a high 16th on the list.

Not just Delhi, most parts of north India have done badly in the survey conducted by the ministry of urban development as part of the Swachh Bharat campaign. In the survey that assessed municipal areas for minimal open defecation and effective solid waste management, only 12 cities from the north make it to the top 100. The south sweeps 39 ranks, the east 27, the west 15 and the North-east 7.

Mysore is India's cleanest municipal area and Damoh in Madhya Pradesh the dirtiest. Bengaluru tops state capitals in the list and Patna stands last.

Here is a stunner for Delhi loyalists who never tire of comparing their city's clean and green environs to Mumbai's chaos -- Greater Mumbai actually stands way above the capital, 147th in the list, and Navi Mumbai ranks an impressive No 3.

The list includes only Class I cities with a population of more than one lakh. Patna municipal area ranks the lowest among state capitals, ending at No 429. Chandigarh, which was the cleanest city in 2014, has slipped to No 21 this year.

West Bengal has done exceptionally well, with 25 municipal areas in the state making it to the top 100 cities. Though Uttar Pradesh has the maximum number of municipal areas, only Etawah has made it to the best 100.

"Mysore leads the cities with minimal open defecation and extensive adoption of solid waste management practices," said an official statement. Sources said this ranking shows that smaller municipal areas are managed better while bigger ones face huge problems in dealing with dirt.

The ranking used three methodologies - primary data from the municipal bodies, field inspection and ground interaction with people. The survey also assessed the status of septage management (disposal of sewage from septik tanks), waste water treatment, drinking water quality, surface quality of water bodies, and mortality due to water-borne diseases.

A ministry spokesperson said that since the Swachh Bharat Mission is being implemented in urban areas with a focus on the construction of toilets in households and public areas to eradicate open defecation and ensure door-to-door collection and disposal of municipal solid waste. This explains the use of the two primary parameters in the survey.

"This survey will help assess the present situation in these cities so that they can undertake necessary interventions to meet SBM targets in urban areas," the spokesperson said.