Depalpur becomes India's second cleanest small city in Swachh Survekshan 2025

According to a report by Amar Ujala, Depalpur in Madhya Pradesh has achieved unprecedented success in Swachh Survekshan 2025-26, securing the second rank nationwide in the category of low-population cities. Depalpur, which was ranked 1710th last year, has reached the second position this year by delivering a magnificent performance in the Swachhata Premier League. For this major achievement of Depalpur, the Depalpur Municipal Council was honoured by President Droupadi Murmu at a special felicitation ceremony held in Delhi.

Indore's cleanliness model is considered responsible for Depalpur's success. The Indore Municipal Corporation team worked hard throughout the year to improve the condition of Depalpur. Due to Indore's waste management model, better waste disposal methods, and active public participation, Depalpur has succeeded in becoming a waste-free and clean city. While Indore itself leads in cleanliness, its neighbouring city Depalpur has now also brought glory to itself across the country.

In Depalpur, which has a population of approximately 20,000, the cleaning arrangements were not adequate previously. Mountains of waste had accumulated in the trenching ground of Banedia. To solve this problem, the Indore Municipal Corporation team first disposed of the old accumulated waste and developed a green forest on the vacated land. Additionally, necessary arrangements for the scientific disposal of waste at the trenching ground were also established.

To streamline the city's cleaning system, a map of Depalpur was prepared and specific routes were determined for waste collection. According to these routes, a plan was formulated for vehicles to collect waste from door to door. The biggest challenge was to make people aware so that they could separate wet and dry waste. For this purpose, the help of NGOs was taken, and the entire Depalpur was connected with a 100 per cent door-to-door waste collection system.

Previously, people in Depalpur used to throw waste in public dustbins, which caused difficulties in cleaning the city. Municipal Council vehicles used to transport this waste to the trenching ground. However, the Indore Municipal Corporation team removed all public dustbins from the city and instead distributed more than 15,000 dustbins to the people. Since wet and dry waste began to be collected separately from homes, its disposal became easier. As the habit of throwing waste in the open stopped, filth on empty plots and roads decreased, which also led to an improvement in the level and quality of cleaning done in the morning.

A special cleaning campaign was conducted to beautify the back lanes or alleys of the city. The walls of these lanes were decorated, as a result of which people stopped throwing waste there. Road dividers and public places were beautified through wall paintings. A unit was also established to make compost from wet waste. Along with improving the cleaning system, stray animals spreading filth on the roads were also removed from the city and sent to gaushalas, which reduced the filth caused by animals on the roads.

This progress of Depalpur shows how, with proper planning and administrative cooperation, even a small city can find a place in the list of the country's best clean cities. These changes, carried out under the guidance of Indore, have completely transformed the face of Depalpur.

Depalpur is a city located in the state of Madhya Pradesh which is administered by a Municipal Council. It is located near Indore city and its population is approximately 20,000.