Uttar Pradesh Achieves Significant Milestones in Swachh Survekshan 2024 Rankings

Uttar Pradesh's Urban Sanitation Progress

Uttar Pradesh has demonstrated impressive advancements in urban sanitation and cleanliness as reflected in the latest Swachh Survekshan (SS) 2024-2025 results, showing notable improvements compared to SS 2023. The state has excelled in crucial metrics such as Water+ certification, ODF++ coverage, and the number of Garbage Free Cities (GFCs).

Significant Growth in Water+ and ODF++ Certifications

In the previous year, only two cities—Prayagraj and Noida—achieved Water+ certification. This year, that number has increased dramatically to 16 cities, including Noida, indicating enhanced wastewater management practices across urban areas.

Rise in Garbage Free City Ratings

Uttar Pradesh has also made strides in its Garbage Free City (GFC) ratings. In 2023, the state had no cities rated with 7 stars, just one five-star city (Noida), and a total of 65 GFCs. However, in SS 2024, Lucknow achieved a 7-star rating, while six cities—Agra, Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Ghaziabad, Prayagraj, and Noida—received 5-star ratings. Furthermore, six cities earned 3-star ratings, and 70 cities were rated with 1 star, bringing the total GFCs to 83, an increase of 18 from the previous year.

Performance Across Different Population Categories

Million-Plus Cities

Uttar Pradesh's larger urban centers have shown commendable performance, with Lucknow ranking in the Top 3 nationally. Both Lucknow and Agra made it to the Top 10, while six cities, including Ghaziabad, Prayagraj, Kanpur, and Varanasi, were listed in the Top 20.

Cities with 3–10 Lakh Population

Gorakhpur ranked in the Top 5, with both Gorakhpur and Moradabad appearing in the Top 10. Seven cities, including Mathura, Firozabad, Saharanpur, Jhansi, and Bareilly, made it to the Top 20 in this category.

Cities with 50,000 – 3 Lakh Population

This category had limited representation, with Bijnor being the only city in the Top 30 (Rank 29), alongside Modinagar in the Top 40.

Cities with 20,000 – 50,000 Population

Anupshehar secured a position in the Top 20 (Rank 13), while Sidhauli made it into the Top 30.

Population Less Than 20,000

No Urban Local Body (ULB) from Uttar Pradesh appeared in the Top 100 rankings for this category, highlighting an area needing improvement in smaller towns.

Lucknow's Remarkable Achievement

On Monday, Uttar Pradesh's Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna announced that Lucknow has been recognized as the third cleanest city in the country, according to the recently released Swachh Survekshan 2024 rankings. The minister noted that the capital city improved its ranking by 41 points from its previous position. "In the central government’s 'Swachhata Survekshan-2024', Lucknow has set a record, jumping 41 points to secure the third position nationwide," Khanna shared on social media.