Decade of Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan: Gradual Progress, No Dramatic Changes

As the country marks the completion of ten years of the launch of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan (Clean India Mission), the stage is set for the next phase of the country-wide mass movements for cleanliness.  Prime Minister had launched the Mission on October 2^nd, 2014. This day is celebrated as Swachh Bharat Diwas. The two key components of the programme are – Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) and Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban).

In the first five years, the focus of the Mission was to make all villages across the country Open Defecation Free (ODF) and promote scientific processing of Municipal Solid Waste in urban areas. The government declared India ‘Open Defecation Free’ in 2019.

In its next avatar, the Mission’s objective was to sustain the progress of the first five years on ODF, while promoting solid and liquid waste management in villages. Making cities garbage-free through 100% source segregation, door-to-door collection, and scientific waste management were among the other objectives of the Mission.

Since September last year, the government has been running a 360-degree mass-media campaign, under the theme Swachhata Hi Seva 2024, to spread awareness about the Mission across the country.

According to media reports, a recent survey by localcircles.in found that eight out of ten Indians surveyed wanted the government to make it mandatory for all packaged foods to have packaging that is recyclable, compostable, biodegradable, or reusable by end of 2025.