President Murmu to confer Swachh Survekshan 2025-26 awards on 11 Nov

9 November 2026 · English Polity & Governance

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Current affairs of 9 November 2026 (Shanmugam IAS Academy) – explained for UPSC, TNPSC and other competitive exams

News

President Droupadi Murmu will confer the Swachh Survekshan 2025-26 awards – the 10th edition of the urban cleanliness survey – at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, on 11 November 2026. Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal and Minister of State Tokhan Sahu will be present; cities are awaiting the announcement of the winners. The theme is 'Swachhata Ki Nayi Pehel – Badhayein Haath, Karein Safai Saath' (a new initiative for cleanliness – join hands, clean together). Cities across the country were assessed on 43 indicators in 10 assessment areas by more than 3,000 trained assessors on the ground. Extra weight went to citizen feedback, river fronts, coastlines and water bodies, preventing open defecation and urination, cleanliness of tourist and heritage spots, and behaviour change in schools. The 'Swachh Shehar Jodi' mentoring initiative, launched on 27 September 2025, pairs better-performing 'mentor' cities with 'mentee' cities that need support, across States and Union Territories. Welfare of sanitation workers (Safai Mitras) is one of the 10 assessment areas.

Key facts for the exam

Background

• The Swachh Bharat Mission began on 2 October 2014 (Gandhi Jayanti). Its urban arm (SBM-U) is under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and its rural arm (SBM-G) under the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of Jal Shakti. SBM-U 2.0, launched on 1 October 2021, aims at 'Garbage Free Cities'.
• Swachh Survekshan began in 2016 with 73 cities and is now the world's largest urban cleanliness survey. Mysuru topped in 2016; Indore (Madhya Pradesh) topped eight times in a row from 2017 to 2024-25. The 2024-25 edition introduced the 'Super Swachh League' – cities that were in the top three in at least two of the years 2021–23 compete separately (and must keep scoring 85%+), giving other cities a chance.
• 2024-25 results (17 July 2025): in the over-10-lakh category Ahmedabad, Bhopal and Lucknow took the top three; Indore, Surat, Navi Mumbai and Vijayawada were in the Super Swachh League. The theme was 'Reduce, Reuse, Recycle'.
• Environment and science: Segregation at source (wet, dry, domestic hazardous) is the basis of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. Certification levels are ODF (no open defecation), ODF+ (maintained community/public toilets), ODF++ (no untreated faecal sludge or sewage discharged) and Water+ (used water treated and reused). Composting and biogas from wet waste are part of the circular economy.

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Sources: webindia123 (UNI); Asianet Newsable; PIB (2024-25 award list); President of India; DT Next; Lokmat Times (IANS); Deccan Herald. Compiled by Shanmugam IAS Academy.

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