President of India to Confer 10th Edition Swachh Survekshan 2025-26 Awards

Key Highlights:

• The President of India will confer the 10th edition of Swachh Survekshan Awards 2025-26 on November 11, 2026.
• Organized by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), the awards celebrate contributions to Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban.
• The survey has expanded significantly, assessing over 4,751 cities in its latest edition, up from 73 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in 2016.
• Key enhancements include greater citizen feedback, expanded coverage of water bodies, and focus on tourist/heritage spots.
• The new Swachh Shehar Jodi initiative fostered peer learning between 70 mentor and 191 mentee cities for urban waste management.

Detailed Insights:

• The 10th edition's theme is ‘Swachhata Ki Nayi Pehel- Badhayein Haath, Karein Safai Saath’, reflecting a renewed commitment to cleanliness.
• The assessment evaluates 43 indicators across 10 key areas, including waste management, sanitation access, and citizen feedback.
• The assessment process is fully digital, transparent, and uses real-time GPS-enabled monitoring by over 3,000 trained assessors.
• The Swachh Shehar Jodi program, launched on September 27, 2025, aims to accelerate urban waste management excellence through mentorship.
• Mentee cities showed significant improvements in 'Visible Cleanliness' (48% to 70%) and 'Door-to-Door Collection' (52% to 74%) between SS 2024 and 2025.
• Other improvements in mentee cities include Source Segregation (16% to 30%), Access to Sanitation (11% to 38%), and Used Water Management (32% to 53%).

Key Concepts Involved:

• Swachh Survekshan: A flagship annual cleanliness survey conducted by the Government of India for urban areas.
• Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U): A nationwide campaign by the Government of India to achieve universal sanitation and cleanliness in urban areas.
• Urban Local Bodies (ULBs): Local self-governing bodies responsible for the administration of urban areas in India.
• Swachh Shehar Jodi: A mentorship and peer-learning program for urban waste management between high-performing and developing cities.