The Centre has launched the Swachh Survekshan Grameen, 2018, a nationwide survey of rural India to rank the cleanest and dirtiest States and districts on the basis of qualitative and quantitative evaluation.
A random selection of 6, 980 villages across 698 districts will surveyed during the month of August, following which the Swachh Survekshan Grameen awards are expected to be announced in time for Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary on October 2.
This is the first comprehensive survey for rural India, which has been launched after three successful editions of a similar survey in urban India, Parameswaran Iyer, Secretary to the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation said at the launch event.
“Citizen engagement is a key objective of this programme...we hope to get feedback from more than 50 lakh people,” he added.
The rankings will be based on three basic parameters: direct observation of public places by independent surveyors, service-level progress using data from the Swachh Bharat Mission’s information system and citizens’ feedback. The feedback will be solicited through village meetings, online feedback and direct interviews, as well as discussions with key influencers such as local officials, elected representatives and anganwadi workers, said Mr. Iyer. An audio-visual publicity campaign, featuring Swachh Bharat ambassadors Amitabh Bachchan and Sachin Tendulkar, was also launched.
