Indore and Surat clinched the top positions as the 'cleanest cities' in India, maintaining their impressive streak in the Central government's annual cleanliness survey. Navi Mumbai secured a commendable third place in the rankings, reinforcing its commitment to cleanliness.

In the 'best-performing states' category of the 'Swachh Survekshan Awards 2023,' Maharashtra emerged as the leader, followed by Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The prestigious awards were presented by President Droupadi Murmu at a ceremony attended by Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and other dignitaries.

Indore, a consistent performer, secured the cleanest city title for the seventh consecutive year. Maharashtra's Sasvad earned recognition as the cleanest city among those with a population of less than 1 lakh. Chhattisgarh’s Patan and Maharashtra's Lonavala secured the second and third positions in this category, respectively.

Varanasi claimed the title of the best and cleanest Ganga town, with Prayagraj following closely. The Mhow Cantonment Board in Madhya Pradesh achieved the top rank in the category of cleanest cantonment boards.

Highlighting the massive scale of participation, the survey involved 4,447 urban local bodies, receiving an impressive 12 core citizen responses. The government proudly asserts that this survey is the world's largest initiative to assess cleanliness.

In a notable achievement, the New Delhi area administered by the NDMC secured the seventh rank in the 'cleanest cities' category. NDMC also earned distinctions, being recognized as a 5-star garbage-free city and the cleanest city within the Union Territory in the Swachh Survekshan 2023 awards.