Vizag records lowest Swachh rank in 3 years Rani Devalla

Visakhapatnam: A big disappointment awaited Vizagites on Tuesday as the results of Swachh Survekshan survey 2019 released. From the fifth cleanest city in 2016 to bagging the third spot in 2017 and securing the seventh place in 2018, the city has now slipped to the 23rd place (3,744.09 points) the lowest in the past three years, fading away from the top ranks’ list way behind.

Initiated by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), the survey focussed on ensuring sustainability of cleanliness drives taken along with largescale public participation which would aid the civic bodies in improving the living standards.

In the current year’s rankings, Indore continued to gain the top spot for the third consecutive year. While Ambikapur in Chhattisgarh secured the second position, Mysuru in Karnataka surfaced in the third place.

Explaining the reason for not able to march forward in the rankings, Chief Medical Officer (Health) and nodal officer of Swachh Survekshan A Hemanth said that citizen participation played a key role in the survey along with other parameters. 

“This apart, source segregation is a big challenge where the city could have been scored much better in the rankings which requires 100 per cent cooperation of the citizens.

There is also a need to make people understand the importance of keeping the city clean while helping the civic bodies bring down open-defecation to zero and maintaining the city plastic-free, among other aspects,” he stated, adding that the connect between citizens and the Corporation should be enhanced further to achieve a remarkable outcome in Swachh Survekshan survey.

Though the current rankings of the city turns out to be shocking for many, members of Andhra Pradesh Federation of Resident Welfare Associations (APFERWAS) say that it should be a collective exercise to push the rankings to the top spot next time.

“At present, the city is not painting a beautiful picture as roads in several neighbourhoods have been dug up for underground cabling. Moreover, the rankings depend on the collective effort of citizens through their feedback and significant participation,” opines Uday Shirname, president of APFERWAS, Visakhapatnam chapter.

Many opine that there is a wide scope for improvement in the rankings if the mindset of people towards cleanliness takes a new route coupled with the effectiveness of the Corporation.