Shimla cleanliness ranking dips, now 347th in country

Tribune News Service

Shimla, July 17

In an alarming trend, Shimla, known for its scenic beauty has further slipped in the national rankings of cleanest cities. The city has been ranked 347, down from its 188th rank that it held last year. The rankings were revealed in the Swachhta Sarvekshan Survey 2024-25, the result of which was declared today. However, Shimla has ranked number three in the cleanest cities in Himachal Pradesh.

A team of Swachhta Sarvekshan had visited the town earlier this year during which they conducted an extensive survey to assess the cleanliness in the town.

As per the City Report Card, the town has scored zero per cent in cleanliness of water bodies as well as in remediation of dumping sites. The city has been given a score of 2 per cent in source segregation, 42 per cent in door to door garbage collection, 44 per cent in waste generation vs processing and 100 per cent in cleanliness in residential areas.

Meanwhile, the Municipal Corporation, Shimla, has expressed deep disappointment with the ranking and has decided to ask the ministry to re-evaluate the town. Mayor, Municipal Corporation, Shimla, Surinder Chauhan said that the ranking is very unfair as the corporation has made continuous efforts to maintain cleanliness in the town. He said that Theog has been named the cleanest city in the town, “but the waste generated from Theog is brought to our processing plant in Bhariyal”. He said that it affects the morale of the workers who have been working day and night to keep the town clean.

Also, Theog, a town 29 km away from Shimla, has emerged as the cleanest town in the state and ranked 12 under the Promising Swachh Shahar of a state/UT category of the Swachh Survekshan 2024-25, that was held in New Delhi. At least 34 cities from across the state were featured in the list.

Himachal Tribune