PCMC commissioner Vijay Suryavanshi (third from right), additional commissioner Kuldeep Jangam (second from right), and deputy commissioner Pradip Thengal (extreme right) were also present on the occasion PCMC mayor Ravi Landge on Wednesday receives the award from President Droupadi Murmu.
Pune: Pimpri Chinchwad has emerged as Maharashtra ’s cleanest city in the ‘Swachh Survekshan 2025–26’, the cleanliness survey conducted by Union ministry of housing and urban affairs. The survey evaluated local self-governing bodies across 43 indicators covering 10 key assessment areas, according to the ministry. He said the civic body had slipped from eighth place in 2024–25 to 12th in 2025–26.
Winning this award through the recognition of sanitation workers’ efforts and active citizen participation is a matter of pride for the city,” Pimpri Chinchwad mayor Ravi Landge said. Along with ensuring strict adherence to waste segregation at source, regular collection, scientific processing, recycling and cleanliness of public spaces, we have also focused on the effective use of technology and enhanced field-level monitoring,” said civic commissioner Vijay Suryavanshi. Activists, however, said the award is shocking, and its parameters should be made public. If PCMC is receiving an award despite such shortcomings in its solid waste management system, it is surprising and shocking,” said activist Manav Kamble.
These included waste segregation, collection and transportation, solid waste management, visible cleanliness, access to sanitation, mechanisation of desludging services, strengthening of the sanitation ecosystem and institutional mechanisms, used water management, advocacy for cleanliness, welfare of sanitation workers and citizen feedback and grievance redressal. “The award is a tribute to the collective efforts of the city. Cleanliness holds a fundamental place in the city’s development and requires active participation from citizens alongside the administration. “Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has made the city’s sanitation system more robust, disciplined and effective. The municipal administration placed special emphasis on planned methodology, effective implementation and coordination among various departments. “The mishap at the Moshi garbage depot has exposed PCMC’s poor garbage management. Heaps of garbage are seen in several corners of the city. Prashant Jagtap, a Congress leader in Pune, claimed in a statement that PMC’s performance had deteriorated compared to previous years.