Ahmedabad-Sanand top Swachh Survekshan 2025-26 Clean City Pair ranking
Synopsis
Ahmedabad and Sanand have jointly topped India's first-ever 'Clean City Pair' ranking under Swachh Survekshan 2025-26, with the AMC mentoring Sanand and four other Gujarat cities on waste segregation and sanitation. Mayor Hitesh Barot received the award from President Murmu — a signal that cooperative urban governance, not just individual city performance, is becoming a metric that matters nationally.
Key Takeaways
Ahmedabad and Sanand ranked 1st nationally in the Clean City Pair category of Swachh Survekshan Awards 2025-26 .
Mayor Hitesh Barot received the award from President Droupadi Murmu in New Delhi on 11 November 2026 .
The Mentor-Mentee City category was introduced this year under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban .
The AMC extended mentoring to 5 cities in Gujarat: Sanand, Ranavav, Wankaner, Salaya, and Mundra-Baroi.
Support covered waste segregation , wastewater management , solid waste management , and sanitation worker welfare .
Ahmedabad and Sanand have claimed the first position nationally in the 'Clean City Pair' category of the Swachh Survekshan Awards 2025-26, with Ahmedabad serving as the mentor city and Sanand as the mentee city. The recognition was conferred at a national award ceremony held in New Delhi on Wednesday, 11 November 2026, where Ahmedabad Mayor Hitesh Barot received the award from President Droupadi Murmu.
A New Category Under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban
The 'Mentor-Mentee City' category was introduced this year under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban to encourage better-performing urban local bodies to share technical expertise and operational practices with smaller cities. The concept recognises that cleanliness gains are more durable when institutional knowledge flows between municipalities rather than remaining siloed. Ahmedabad's inclusion as a mentor city reflects its sustained performance in past Swachh Survekshan cycles.
What Ahmedabad Brought to the Table
The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) provided technical guidance, knowledge transfers, and operational support to Sanand Municipality to strengthen its urban cleanliness infrastructure. The assistance spanned waste segregation, wastewater management, solid waste management, and the welfare of sanitation workers. Beyond Sanand, Ahmedabad also extended mentoring to other urban local bodies across Gujarat, including Ranavav, Wankaner, Salaya, and Mundra-Baroi.
Who Was Present at the Ceremony
State Ministers Kanu Desai and Urban Development Minister Darshana Vaghela attended the ceremony alongside the Ahmedabad delegation. The city's representation also included Deputy Mayor Anju Shah, Standing Committee Chairman Kamlesh Patel, ruling party leader Jashu Thakor, whip Atul Mishra, and senior AMC officials including Deputy Municipal Commissioner Amritesh Aurangabadkar, department director Dr Vijay Mistry, and committee chairman Deepak Panchal.
What This Means for Ahmedabad's Cleanliness Record
The award adds to Ahmedabad's established track record in national urban cleanliness assessments. The AMC attributed the achievement to the collective efforts of its elected representatives, officials, sanitation workers, and citizens. Notably, the ranking was determined by joint performance of both cities against prescribed Swachh Survekshan parameters, making coordination between the two municipalities as important as individual scores. This model, if replicated, could reshape how Indian cities approach cleanliness — not as a competitive exercise but as a collaborative one. Future editions of the Swachh Survekshan are expected to expand the Mentor-Mentee category further, increasing pressure on major cities to demonstrate measurable impact on their mentee counterparts.
Point of View
But its ability to lift smaller municipalities is a harder, more structural test. The real question is whether the guidance extended to Sanand, Ranavav, and others translates into lasting institutional capacity or remains a one-year exercise tied to award eligibility. If the AMC's model becomes a template, it could address one of Swachh Bharat's persistent gaps: smaller urban local bodies that lack the technical depth to sustain cleanliness gains beyond assessment cycles.
NationPress
11 Nov 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Clean City Pair category in Swachh Survekshan 2025-26?
The Clean City Pair category, also called the Mentor-Mentee City category, was introduced this year under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban. It ranks pairs of cities where a better-performing urban local body shares technical expertise with a smaller municipality to improve cleanliness outcomes jointly.
Why did Ahmedabad and Sanand win the top Clean City Pair award?
The pair ranked first nationally based on their joint performance against Swachh Survekshan parameters. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation provided technical support to Sanand Municipality across waste segregation, solid waste management, wastewater management, and sanitation worker welfare, earning them the top position.
Who received the Swachh Survekshan 2025-26 award on behalf of Ahmedabad?
Ahmedabad Mayor Hitesh Barot received the award from President Droupadi Murmu at a national ceremony in New Delhi on 11 November 2026. State Ministers Kanu Desai and Darshana Vaghela were also present.
Which other cities did Ahmedabad mentor under the initiative?
Beyond Sanand, the AMC extended mentoring to Ranavav, Wankaner, Salaya, and Mundra-Baroi — all urban local bodies in Gujarat — covering cleanliness operations and sanitation worker welfare.
How does the Mentor-Mentee City model work under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban?
Under the model, a high-performing city acts as a mentor, sharing operational practices and technical knowledge with a smaller mentee city. The pair is then assessed jointly against Swachh Survekshan parameters, making inter-city collaboration a direct input into the national ranking.
