Four national awards for AP in the Swachh Survekshan 2023

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh won four of the national Swachh Survekshan awards in the Swachh Survekshan-2023 and emerged top among states in the South.

The temple city of Tirupati has dropped to eighth place among the top 10 cleanest cities in India, according to the Swachh Survekshan rankings. After securing the seventh place last year, Tirupati fell short this time around.

Guntur received the second rank at the national level, followed by Greater Visakhapatnam with the fourth rank, Vijayawada with the sixth rank, and Tirupati with the eighth rank in terms of cleanliness.

The Guntur city won all-India rank II in the Fast Moving City category whereas Panaji got the first rank. Visakhapatnam won the fourth rank in the All India Clean City category, followed by Vijayawada with the 6th all India rank and Tirupati the 8th rank.

Municipal administration and urban development minister Adimulapu Suresh praised the cities of AP that secured three ranks among the top 10. No other state has achieved such a distinction, he noted.

The minister said only four cities in south India made it to the top 10, with AP proudly securing a name for its three cities. “This achievement reflects the collective efforts of the cities and the state's commitment to the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan,” he has stated.

Guntur mayor Kavati Manohar Naidu and commissioner Chekuri Keerthi received the awards from Union Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri at the Swachh Sarvekshan 2023 awards function at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Thursday.

The mayor and commissioners said the 2nd rank was achieved with the collective efforts and cooperation of public health workers, officials and public representatives.

The GVMC has received the 4th Cleanest City award at the national level. Puri gave this award to GVMC in New Delhi.

Mayor Hari Venkata Kumari expressed gratitude to the employees of all departments of GVMC especially the sanitation workers.

Vijayawada Mayor Rayana Bhagyalakshmi and Commissioner Swapnil Pundkar received the award. The mayor credited the success to the tireless efforts of the citizens, municipal staff, and various others who participated in the cleanliness initiatives.

VMC commissioner Pundkar, who played a pivotal role in implementing innovative cleanliness programmes, said that the VMC has achieved a significant milestone by being declared the second cleanest city in AP. The city has earned a five-star rating as a garbage-free city and secured an impressive score of 8,751 out of 9,500 marks in the Swachh Survekshan Awards, placing it sixth nationally after Indore, Surat, New Mumbai, Visakhapatnam and Bhopal.