Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan Awards & Wetland Cities Recognition Ceremony 2025 was organised today by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the presence of the Union Minister of Environment, Forest & Climate Change Minister, EF&CC has awarded best-performing cities under Swachh Vayu Sarveshan 2025 conducted in 130 cities under National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).

National Clean Air Programme began with a powerful message from our Prime Minister on 15^th August, 2020. The Prime Minister called for action in 100 cities to reduce pollution in mission mode through integrated and modern approach.

As per the clarion call given by the  Minister, MoEFCC has been implementing National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), which has moved from planning to real action and has shown visible results.

The Minister congratulated eleven best-performing cities out of 130 NCAP cities under Swachh Vayu Sarveskshan 2025 for demonstrating the outstanding commitment and innovation in advancing the mission of clean air.

Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan is structured as a rigorous, multi-tiered evaluation mechanism, founded on comprehensive due diligence under the National Clean Air Programme. Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan is conducted for 130 cities under NCAP annually to promote healthy competition among cities to take expeditious actions to improve air quality.

The following cities were conferred awards by the Minister, EF&CC:

In Category-1 (population of over 10 lakh population):

1. Indore secured 1^st rank with score of 200 out of 200. A cash award of Rs. 1.5 crore has been provided.  Indore has planted over 16 lakh trees in last year, earning a Guinness World Record, and has public transport run through 120 electric buses and 150 CNG buses.
2. Jabalpur secured 2nd rank with score of 199 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 1 crore has been provided. Jabalpur has set up 11 MW waste to energy plant and developed greenery.
3. Agra and Surat secured 3^rd rank with a score of 196 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 25 lakh has been provided to each city. Agra has remediated legacy waste dump site and carried out Miyawaki plantation. Surat has brought EV policy to provide incentives and tax benefits to EVs and maintains 38% green cover.

In Category – 2 (population between 3 and 10 lakh):

1. Amravati secured 1st rank with score of 200 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 75 lakh has been provided. Amravati improved road infrastructure including 340 km end-to-end pavement and carried out extensive greening in 53 gardens, and converted 19 acres of barren land into dense forest.
2. Jhansi and Moradabad secured 2^nd rank with score of 198.5 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 25 lakh has been provided. Jhansi developed urban greening and miyawaki forests. Moradabad has worked on road infrastructure and construction and demolition waste management.
3. Alwar secured 3^rd rank with a score of 197.6 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 25 lakh has been provided. Alwar has remediated the legacy waste dump.

In Category- 3 (population under 3 lakh):

1. Dewas secured 1^st rank with score of 193 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 37.50 lakh has been provided. Dewas shifted industries to cleaner fuels
2. Parwanoo secured 2^nd rank with score of 191.5 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 25 lakh has been provided. Parwanoo worked on end-to-end pavement of roads
3. Angul secured 3^rd rank with score of 191 out of 200. Cash award of Rs. 12.50 lakh has been provided. Angul also worked on road infrastructure and conducted public outreach activities.

These awards were received by Mayors, District Collectors and Municipal Commissioners of respective cities.

The Minister congratulated Moradabad and Agra for being 3 times winner; Indore, Jabalpur, Surat, Jhansi, Dewas, Parwanoo and Angul for being 2 times winner; and Alwar city for being the new winner.

Under the National Clean Air Programme, Govt. has made an allocation of Rs. 20,130 crore to 130 cities. Air Quality Performance linked grant of ₹ 13,237 crore has been provided to 130 cities as a critical gap funding to implement air pollution mitigation measures, during 2019-20 till date. Funding from the convergence of resources from various Central Government schemes such as Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban), AMRUT, Smart City Mission, SATAT, FAME-II, and Nagar Van Yojana is being mobilized.

Government has provided Rs. 73,350 crores through various Central Government Schemes and Programmes from different Ministries for developing sustainable and green infrastructure to improve air quality. State Government and local bodies have also contributed to the tune of Rs. 82,000 crores resulting in total financial mobilization of Rs. 1.55 lakh crores in these 130 cities.

Cities under National Clean Air Programme have been implementing clean air action plans to address air pollution in various sectors, namely road dust, waste management, vehicular pollution, C&D waste management, industrial pollution.

The Minister informed that emphasis is now given to recycle and reuse instead of the ‘take-make-dispose’ approach. Government has taken more initiatives under Circular Economy for controlling the waste disposal in the environment.

The Minister expressed the progress made through National Clean Air Programme in showing improvement of air quality in PM10 levels in 103 cities out of 130 cities. He congratulated the 64 cities that have shown 20% reductions in PM10 levels in 2024-25 compared to the levels of 2017-18, and he commended the 25 cities that have achieved the 40% reduction mark by 2024-25 itself.

During the event, the ‘Ward-Level Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan Guidelines’ were released. HMEFCC informed that the annual Sarvekshan will now be extended to the ward level for increasing the awareness and encourage action on air pollution mitigation at the ward level.

Further, a ‘Compendium of Best Practices under the National Clean Air Programme’ Has also been released. This resource showcases effective strategies implemented by various cities under NCAP, offering valuable insights that other cities can learn from and replicate to enhance their own air quality initiatives.

He informed that the digital platform like PRANA portal have helped cities track their progress at the same time ensure transparency in the implementation of air quality improvement activities undertaken by the cities.

The Minister informed that Government has targeted to plant 75 crore plants during the Seva Parv from 17^th September to 2^nd October, 2025 under Ek Ped Maa ke Naam campaign. MoEFCC has also targeted to develop 75 Nagar Vans under Nagar Van Yojana.

The Minister expressed his happiness to share achievement of the Govt. during last 10 years that the number of Ramsar sites have increased to 91 from 25 Ramsar sites in 2014 showing improvement of 250%.

The Prime Minister has initiated Mission Amrit Sarovar to develop and rejuvenate water bodies in each district of the country.  As limited fresh water resources are available, for meeting the demand of increasing population, the Prime Minister launched Mission LiFE with the seven themes, including the theme of ‘Save Water’, to adopt environment-friendly lifestyles by all citizens.

Country has 4.7% of lakes out of its geographical area, out which two-third are outside the forest. Lakes provide flood management, are epitome of cultural identity and provide livelihood to fishermen. Lakes function as kidney to the environment for absorbing pollutants.

Further, the Minister informed that the Government has taken several initiatives to protect wetlands considering their role in environmental conservation, biodiversity, and sustainable livelihoods. India is a party to Ramsar Convention on wetlands and has now 91 wetlands with 1.36 million hectares, recognized as Ramsar sites, the highest number in Asia and the third-highest globally.

Wetland City Accreditation scheme has been introduced by the Ramsar Convention and the scheme recognizes cities which have taken exceptional steps to safeguard their urban wetlands.

The Minister has congratulated the two cities, namely Indore and Udaipur, for being recognised as Wetland Cities under Ramsar Convention. He has handed over the certificates issued by Ramsar Convention Secretariat to the Mayors and District Collectors of these cities.

The Minister congratulated Indore for being the cleanest city in the country on continuous basis.

The Minister emphasized that the awards ceremony was about reaffirming our commitment to clean air and protecting environment. While congratulating the winning cities, he urged everyone to continue working in mission mode, as envisioned by the the Prime Minister, to ensure that every citizen breathes cleaner air and every city becomes a model of sustainable development.

The event was also graced by Secretary, MoEFCC and Chairperson of Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining areas. The Mayors, District Collectors and Municipal Commissioners, Officers from MoEFCC, Central Polluton Control Board and State Pollution Control Boards have joined the event.

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GS