Sri Vijaya Puram has been awarded the Special Category title of “Promising Swachh Shehar” in the ninth edition of Swachh Survekshan 2024-25, marking a milestone in the city’s ongoing sanitation and waste management efforts. The announcement was made during a national ceremony held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, on July 17, in the presence of the President of India and senior Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) officials.
The recognition comes under the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” theme of this year’s Swachh Survekshan, India’s largest urban sanitation survey. Sri Vijaya Puram secured a score of 9096 out of 12,500, equating to 72.27%, in the medium city category (population between 0.5 to 3 lakh), reflecting steady improvements in cleanliness, community participation, and urban waste management.
As part of the evaluation, the city earned ODF++ certification and achieved a 3-Star Garbage Free City (GFC) rating for the first time. The survey took into account 16 residential pockets, 2 commercial areas, 6 public toilets, 12 schools, 350 households, 36 solid waste processing units, a dumpsite remediation site, and a Faecal Sludge Treatment Plant. Additionally, 11,100 citizen feedback entries were collected and independently verified, contributing to the city’s final score.
A delegation from the Sri Vijaya Puram Municipal Council (SVPMC) received the award, including the Chairperson, Secretary, OSD to the Chief Secretary of Andaman & Nicobar Administration, the Superintending Engineer, and the Sanitary Officer.
This year’s Swachh Survekshan featured three award categories: Super Swachh League Cities (Presidential Awards), National Rankings (Presidential Awardees), and Special Category Awards (Cabinet Minister-level recognitions). Sri Vijaya Puram was selected under the third category, indicating targeted and thematic performance improvements in areas like sanitation innovation, recycling, and public engagement.
The city showed significant improvement in national rankings, climbing to the 99th position out of 824 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in 2024-25. This is a sharp leap from last year’s rank of 164 among 446 ULBs, highlighting a year-on-year gain driven by administrative coordination and grassroots-level implementation.
Officials attributed the success to the joint effort of sanitation workers, municipal teams, and active residents. The campaign encouraged behaviour change among citizens, supported door-to-door waste segregation, and promoted the use of decentralised waste management solutions. Enhanced monitoring of public sanitation facilities and transparent grievance redressal mechanisms also played a key role.
Authorities have pointed to this award as a validation of long-term investments in improving solid waste infrastructure and citizen outreach programmes. The SVPMC is expected to use the recognition as a platform to further streamline waste logistics, adopt digital tracking tools, and expand green zone initiatives.
The recognition also serves to strengthen the city’s eligibility for future government-backed urban development schemes. The visible improvement in rankings positions Sri Vijaya Puram among the top-performing medium-sized cities in the country and may boost its appeal in national-level funding competitions.
SVPMC extended its appreciation to residents and sanitation staff, calling the recognition a shared achievement. Moving forward, officials indicated their focus will remain on increasing recycling rates, improving air and water quality, and ensuring long-term sustainability in urban services.
The Swachh Survekshan platform, implemented by MoHUA, has become a key instrument in tracking the real-time progress of India’s urban hygiene movement, setting the stage for competitive and transparent governance. Sri Vijaya Puram’s recognition under the 2025 edition adds momentum to the islands’ broader mission of sustainable and citizen-centric urban development.
