Next cleanliness survey in January

The next round of cleanliness survey of urban areas across the country will take place in January.

'Swachh Survekshan 2019' will be held from January 4 to 31 in all cities, which would encourage "large scale" citizen participation ensuring sustainability of initiatives taken towards garbage-free and open defecation-free cities, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs stated.

To ensure credible survey, it will be validated by third-party certification. The "Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) ODF ( Open Defecation Free) Plus" and "SBM ODF Plus Plus" protocols that are planned to be launched are geared towards this objective.

"While the 'SBM ODF Plus' protocol focuses on sustaining community/public toilet usage by ensuring their functionality, cleanliness and maintenance, the 'SBM ODF Plus Plus' will focus on achieving sanitation sustainability by addressing complete sanitation value chain, including safe containment, processing and disposal of faecal sludge and septage," the ministry stated.