Swachh Survekshan 2025-26: Theni-Allinagaram is TN's cleanest city

11 November 2026 · English

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Topics: Tamil Nadu Government Schemes · UPSC Prelims · TNPSC · SSC · Current Affairs

Current affairs of 11 November 2026 (Shanmugam IAS Academy) – explained for UPSC, TNPSC and other competitive exams

News

President Droupadi Murmu presented the Swachh Survekshan (cleanliness survey) 2025-26 awards at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, on 11 November 2026. Theni-Allinagaram Municipality in Theni district was selected as Tamil Nadu's cleanest city; Tamil dailies reported that Municipal Commissioner Parkavi received the award. In the Super Swachh League, Navi Mumbai came first, Surat second and Vijayawada third, so Indore, on top for eight years, was not in that top three. In the over-10-lakh category, Greater Visakhapatnam, Jabalpur and Lucknow took the top three; in the 3–10 lakh category, Ujjain, Chandigarh and Guntur. In newly introduced categories, Puri, Alappuzha and Ratnagiri led the Swachh Coastal Towns; Rewa, Bilaspur and Varanasi the river-front towns; and Rudrapur topped the Himalayan cities. The Ahmedabad–Sanand pair won the 'Swachh Shehar Jodi' category. More than 4,751 cities were assessed on 43 indicators. The President called for effective, affordable and safe sanitation solutions and special attention to the fast-growing Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.

Key facts for the exam

Background

• Constitution: the 74th Amendment (1992) gave municipalities constitutional status (Part IX-A, Articles 243P–243ZG). Public health, sanitation, conservancy and solid waste management are listed as municipal functions in the Twelfth Schedule.
• Geography: Puri (Odisha) is the Jagannath temple town on the Bay of Bengal; Alappuzha (Keralam) is known for its backwaters; Ratnagiri (Maharashtra) lies on the Konkan coast, famed for Alphonso mangoes. Navi Mumbai is a planned city built from the 1970s on the eastern side of Thane Creek, across from Mumbai.
• Theni district was carved out of Madurai district by a G.O. of 25.07.1996; Theni town became the headquarters from 1.1.1997. Vaigai dam and the Kumbakkarai and Suruli falls are in the district. The Cumbum valley at the foot of the Western Ghats is called the 'grape city of South India'; its 'Cumbum Panneer Thratchai' got a Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2023.

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Sources: Dinakaran; Bhoomi Today; The Tribune; ETV Bharat; India TV; Asianet Newsable; The News Mill; ANI; Theni district; Krishi Jagran. Compiled by Shanmugam IAS Academy.

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