An environment think-tank has claimed there were several loopholes in the Swachh Survekshan 2019 survey and ranking of cities.
The Centre for Science and Environment claimed the on-ground assessment for the survey was completed in a mere 28 days to ensure the results were declared before the announcement of the election dates, noting the 2018 exercise was spread over 66 days.
The Swachh Surveskshan awards were conferred by President Ram Nath Kovind at a ceremony here on March 6 in which Indore was adjudged India's cleanest city for a third straight year while the second and third positions in the category were grabbed by Ambikapur in Chhattisgarh and Mysore in Karnataka.
The CSE said the survey did not use adequate numbers of expert and qualified surveyors and certifiers to visit cities for data collection and observation.
"In fact, many state urban departments and city administrations have raised their concerns about the incompetence of the surveyors," it said.
CSE Deputy Director General Chandra Bhushan said, "Swachh Survekshan has definitely led to a paradigm shift by increasing awareness and involving citizens in sanitation and waste management issues. However, this year, the programme has been further diluted instead of being strengthened because of political expediency.
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