National News : A city's ranking in the clean survey is not determined solely by the cleanliness of its roads or the pace of garbage collection. It considers various aspects including segregation and disposal of waste, public toilets, sewage system, safety of sanitation workers and public opinion. The survey is conducted by the Union Ministry of Home and Urban Affairs.

How is the ranking prepared?

The 2025-26 survey covered 4,751 cities across the country. More than 3,000 investigators visited cities to monitor sanitation. This time, evaluation was done on 43 parameters and 176 small points in 10 fields. Out of a total of 12,500 issues, 10,500 issues were for on-ground sanitation and public feedback. The remaining 2,000 points were for certificates of open sanitation-free and waste-free cities. GPS and digital records were also used in the assessment. 27 million people were involved in this survey.

What happened to Indore's ranking?

Indore consistently ranked as the cleanest city in the country from 2017 to 2023. In 2024-25, the government created a separate category called “Super Swachh League”, which included cities that had consistently performed well in the past. In this league, Indore stood first, Surat second and Navi Mumbai third. However, in 2025-26, Navi Mumbai was ranked first, Surat second and Vijayawada third.

This time Indore disappeared from the top three positions

This time Indore did not make it to the top three. However, this alone does not prove that Indore's hygiene standards have declined. The government has also designated Indore as a mentor city to Depalpur in Madhya Pradesh to help improve sanitation there. The pair of Indore and its guide city, Depalpur, ranks second in the country in the category of cities with a population of less than 25,000. Ahmedabad ranks first in the guide city category, and Tirupati ranks third. Under the Swachh Sehar Jodi initiative, they were designated as mentor cities along with Sanand and Kuppam.

What did Navi Mumbai do?

Navi Mumbai was third in the Super Clean League in 2024-25. Now it has reached the first place. Waste management rules are strictly enforced in the city. Regular cleaning of roads and skywalks, special attention to congested areas and action on public complaints through the Sanitation App. This has made Navi Mumbai two places ahead of last year. Therefore, it would be wrong to directly interpret Indore's ranking as a decline in cleanliness. Survey rules, different categories and the performance of other cities also influence the results.