Guwahati cleanest in Northeast, but ranks 44th among 95 cities across India

Guwahati has emerged as the cleanest capital city in the Northeast in the Swachh Survekshan 2024-25 rankings, but the numbers reveal a more complex picture of the city's cleanliness performance.

Despite receiving the "Promising Swachh Shehar" award along with North Lakhimpur, Guwahati secured only the 44th position out of 95 cities in the 3-10 lakh population category. The city scored 8,563 points, falling significantly short of the top performer, Mira-Bhayandar, which achieved 11,652 points to claim the first position.

The gap between Guwahati's award and its actual ranking highlights the nuanced nature of the national cleanliness assessment. While the city has made substantial progress from its previous position of 402nd rank last year, it still trails behind 43 other cities in its population bracket.

President Droupadi Murmu conferred the Swachh Survekshan 2024-25 awards at a ceremony organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. The awards ceremony recognised various categories of achievements under the Swachh Bharat Mission.

Among the northeastern capitals, Guwahati's performance stands out as a significant improvement. The city has also achieved multiple certifications, including all four AMRUT cities in Assam - Guwahati, Silchar, Nagaon, and Dibrugarh - receiving Garbage Free City (GFC) 1-star ranking. Additionally, six cities in the state obtained ODF++ certification, up from zero cities in the previous year.

North Lakhimpur showed remarkable improvement, moving to 155th position out of 820 cities in the 50k to 3L population category. Nagaon and Silchar also registered improvements in their respective rankings, indicating a broader cleanliness initiative across Assam.

The Swachh Survekshan rankings are determined through comprehensive field surveys covering solid waste management, water body restoration, and citizen feedback. This year's assessment was guided by the theme "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle," with evaluation across 10 key parameters and 54 performance indicators.

The city's score of 8,563 points places it in the middle tier of performers, with significant room for improvement in waste management systems, citizen engagement, and infrastructure development to climb higher in future rankings.